EU: Long expected report shows few journalist applications

BRUSSELS - 2. October 2007 - Only 1.07 percent of applicants for access to documents in the Commission in 2005 stated, they were journalists. This may be due to the fact, that there is no obligation to state a reason for applying, and journalists may be behind the 30+ percent of applications without a stated profession. Interest organisations are prominent among users of the law. A long expected report by the Commission on the application of the access to documents in 2005 regulation was published recently.

3173 request were filed in 2005, of which access was granted in 65.08 percent of the cases. In 4.79 percent partial access was granted.

The largest part of the applications, 29 percent, in 2005 came from interest groups, industry and NGOs, the new statistics show. Lawyers and academics were responsible of 11 and 10.5 percent of the applications. Public authorities were the senders of 12 percent of the applications, and other EU institutions sent 3.7 percent of the requests. Journalists - who disclosed themselves as such - sent 1.07 percent of the applications.

The report has been expected for a while. In April 2007 the British civil rights organisation Statewatch filed a complaint with the European Ombudsman about the delay of the annual report for 2005. According to article 17 in the regulation on access to documents, annual reports are due the following year.