Developments in European information issues: Networks and relays – Services – Products, February 2002

The Secretariat-General of the Commission has produced an online Citizen's Guide to access to Commission documents, complete with an application form which can be submitted electronically. The site is located at http://europa.eu.int/comm/secretariat_general/sgc/citguide/index_en.htm. The home page outlines the background to the right of access to documents. The menu on the left of the screen leads to detailed guidance on access to published information and to unpublished documents. Further information provides contact details for the Secretariat-General and its web site, while the annexes heading links to the text of the relevant Regulation. The online request form has a section for details of the person making the request, details of the document wanted, and options for preferred means of access - by post, fax, e-mail or consultation in person. There is a note to the effect that for documents over twenty pages in length there may be a charge of 10 euro plus postage. The site requires Flash 5.0 software to function properly and may crash early versions of browsers. Nevertheless the ability to submit requests online in a straightforward way is to be welcomed.