Söderman attacks Council secrecy

Date: 27/03/03

By Martin Banks

EUROPEAN Ombudsman Jacob Söderman has launched a scathing attack on secrecy in the Council of Ministers in his final report as the Union's watchdog. The Finn, who steps down next week, branded it "old fashioned" in its approach to transparency compared with the other main EU institutions.

"The Council is very good at preaching to others about the importance of fundamental rights but it would do well to promote this itself," he said. "The truth is that the Council still regards the Charter of Fundamental Rights as a "political declaration" which it does not feel the need to enforce."

He described the Council's failure to become more transparent as probably his biggest disappointment in the seven years he has been the Ombudsman.

Across the EU institutions as a whole, though, there had been some progress, he said, highlighting the abolition of age limits in recruitment. He also praised the European Commission for "taking the first steps" to tackle sex discrimination.

Since becoming the first EU Ombudsman in September 1995, Strasbourg-based Söderman has dealt with some 11,000 complaints.

Despite his stinging criticism of the Council, he said EU institutions had generally cooperated well with him. "They are keen to enhance their relations with citizens by reacting quickly and constructively to complaints," he said. "What's more, every case has a preventative effect, paving the way for better procedures and thus reducing the need for complaints in the future."

Last year, the total number of complaints exceeded 2,000 for the first time, an 18% rise on 2001.

Most, however, were inadmissible as they did not concern maladministration - the only type of complaint covered by the Ombudsman.

Of the admissible complaints, 75% were against the Commission, while 9% (21) were against the Parliament and 5% the Council.

Spain produced the greatest number of complaints - 16% of the total, followed by Germany (14%) with Belgium and France both at 10%.

Söderman, who presented his report to the Parliament's petitions committee on Monday (24 March), said Spain topped the complaints league table because that is where his office is best known.

But he dismissed claims that public awareness of the EU Ombudsman's role is still low, insisting his efforts to publicise it had paid dividends.

"The right to complain to the Ombudsman is the second best-known right of citizenship after the right to work in another member state," he said. "Research shows that 87% of citizens know of their right to complain."

He also called on the European Convention, on which he is an observer, to include in its draft constitutional treaty an article expressing the citizen's right to complain.

European Ombudsman Jacob Söderman has launched a scathing attack on secrecy in the Council of Ministers in his final report as the European Union's watchdog.