Ref. Ares(2021)3760758 - 08/06/2021
EUROPEAN COMMISSION
DIRECTORATE-GENERAL FOR HEALTH AND FOOD SAFETY
Crisis preparedness in food, animals and plants
Official controls
Brussels,
sante.ddg2.g.3 (2021)4163704
By email only:
Christiana Maria Mauro
<ask+request-9485-
xxxxxxxx@xxxxxxxx.xxx>
Dear Ms Mauro,
Subject:
Your application for access to documents – Ref GestDem No 2021/3158
We refer to your email of 12 May 2021 in which you make a request for access to
documents, registered on the 14 May 2021 under the above-mentioned reference number.
1. Scope of your request
In your application, you request on the basis of Regulation (EC) No 1049/2001 access to:
“Earlier this year, DG SANTE identified 73 documents as falling within the scope of
request GESTDEM 2020/5856 (member state penalties). It granted, upon consultation
with the third parties, full access to 60 documents and partial access to 13 documents on
March 19, 2021. Can you provide me in digital format all member state penalty
provisions in line with Art 139 of Regulation 2017/625 and shared with the individual
requesting these documents”.
2. Identification and assessment of the documents
We have identified 73 documents falling under the scope of your request.
You will find enclosed a table listing the identified documents and summarising the
outcome of the assessment carried out on the basis of Regulation (EC) No 1049/2001.
Since documents 1 to 73 originate from third party, in accordance with Art. 4(4) of
Regulation (EC) 1049/2001, the originators of the documents have been consulted in order
to assess whether an exception established in Article 4 applies to these documents.
Having examined these documents under the provisions of Article 4 of Regulation (EC)
No 1049/2001 and considered the opinion of the third party, we have come to the
following conclusion:
Commission européenne/Europese Commissie, 1049 Bruxelles/Brussel, BELGIQUE/BELGIË - Tel. +32 22991111
13 documents, numbered 1, 2, 11 and 54 to 63 in the attached table can be
partially disclosed as their full disclosure is prevented by one of the exceptions to
the right of access laid down in Article 4 of Regulation (EC) No 1049/2001.
60 documents, numbered 3 to 10 and 12 to 53 and 64 to 73 can be fully disclosed.
We enclose a copy of the documents.
Please note that documents no 1 to 73 originate from third parties. These documents are
disclosed to you based on Regulation (EC) No 1049/2001. However, this disclosure is
without prejudice to the rules on intellectual property, which may limit your right to
reproduce or exploit the released documents without the agreement of the originator, who
may hold an intellectual property right on them. The European Commission does not assume
any responsibility from their reuse
3. Reasons for partial disclosure
Protection of the privacy and integrity of the individual, in particular in accordance with
Community legislation regarding the protection of personal data - Article 4(1)(b) of
Regulation (EC) No 1049/2001
With regard to the documents No 1, 2, 11 and 54 to 63 a complete disclosure of the
identified documents is prevented by the exception concerning the protection of privacy and
the integrity of the individual outlined in Article 4(1)(b) of Regulation (EC) No 1049/2001,
because they contain the following personal data:
-
the names/initials and contact information of Commission staff members not
pertaining to the senior management;
-
the names/initials and contact details of other natural persons;
-
handwritten signatures/abbreviated signatures of natural persons;
-
other information relating to an identified or identifiable natural person, such as job
titles or functions.
Article 9(1)(b) of the Data Protection Regulation1 does not allow the transmission of
these personal data, except if you prove that it is necessary to have the data transmitted to
you for a specific purpose in the public interest and where there is no reason to assume
that the legitimate interests of the data subject might be prejudiced.
Consequently, we conclude that, pursuant to Article 4(1)(b) of Regulation (EC) No
1049/2001, access cannot be granted to the personal data contained in the requested
documents, as the need to obtain access thereto for a purpose in the public interest has not
been substantiated and there is no reason to think that the legitimate interests of the
individuals concerned would not be prejudiced by disclosure of the personal data concerned.
Therefore the documents listed above are disclosed redacted of the parts containing personal
data and out of the scope of your request.
1 Regulation (EU) 2018/1725 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 23 October 2018 on the
protection of natural persons with regard to the processing of personal data by the Union institutions,
bodies, offices and agencies and on the free movement of such data, and repealing Regulation (EC) No
45/2001 and Decision No 1247/2002/EC, OJ L 295, 21.11.2018, p. 39.
2
4. Means of redress
In case you would disagree with the assessment that the redacted data are personal data
which can only be disclosed if such disclosure is legitimate under the applicable rules on
the protection of personal data, you are entitled, in accordance with Article 7(2) of
Regulation (EC) No 1049/2001, to submit a confirmatory application requesting the
Commission to review this position.
Such a confirmatory application should be addressed within 15 working days upon
receipt of this letter to the Secretariat-General of the Commission at the following
address:
European Commission
Secretariat-General
Unit C.1. ‘Transparency, Document Management and Access to Documents’
BERL 7/076
B-1049 Bruxelles, or by email t
o: xxxxxxxxxx@xx.xxxxxx.xx
Yours sincerely,
Péter BOKOR
Head of Unit
Enclosure:
List of documents and disclosed documents
3
Electronically signed on 08/06/2021 15:42 (UTC+02) in accordance with article 11 of Commission Decision C(2020) 4482