Ref. Ares(2018)6586580 - 20/12/2018
EUROPEAN COMMISSION
Directorate-General for Communications Networks, Content and Technology
Resources and Support
Compliance and Planning
Head of Unit
Brussels,
CONNECT/R4
Mr Alexander Fanta
netzpolitik.org
Schönhauser Allee 6-7
10119 Berlin
Germany
Advance copy via email:
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx@xxxxxxxx.xxx
REGISTERED LETTER WITH ACKNOWLEDGEMENT OF RECEIPT
Subject: Your application for access to documents- Ref GestDem 2018/6184
Dear Mr Fanta,
We refer to your e-mail, dated 22/11/2018, in which you make a request for access to
documents pursuant to Regulation (EC) No 1049/2001 of the European Parliament and of
the Council of 30 May 2001 regarding public access to European Parliament, Council
and Commission documents (‘Regulation 1049/2001’), registered on the same date under
the above-mentioned reference number.
By your application you requested:
΄΄documents which contain the following information:
– all documents related to the 14-12-2017 meeting between Maximilian Strotmann and
Volkswagen, including but not limited to minutes, (hand-written) notes, audio recordings,
verbatim reports, e-mails, and presentations΄΄
We have identified the following document:
• Email exchange concerning the meeting request (6-7 December 2017)
Having examined the identified document, I have arrived at the conclusion that it may be
partially disclosed. Parts of the document have been blanked out as their disclosure is
prevented by the exceptions to the right of access laid down in Article 4 of Regulation
1049/2001.
Commission européenne/Europese Commissie, 1049 Bruxelles/Brussel, BELGIQUE/BELGIË - Tel. +32 22991111
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx@xx.xxxxxx.xx
Parts of the requested document contain personal data, in particular names, initials and
functions of Commission staff and the third party’s staff. Pursuant to Article 4(1)(b)
Regulation No 1049/2001, access to a document has to be refused if its disclosure would
undermine the protection of privacy and the integrity of the individual, in particular in
accordance with European Union legislation regarding the protection of personal data.
The applicable legislation in this field is Regulation (EC) No 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/EC1 (‘Regulation 2018/1725’).
Indeed, Article 3(1) of Regulation 2018/1725 provides that personal data ‘means any
information relating to an identified or identifiable natural person […]’. The Court of
Justice has specified that any information, which by reason of its content, purpose or
effect, is linked to a particular person is to be considered as personal data2. Please note in
this respect that the names, signatures, functions, telephone numbers and/or initials
pertaining to staff members of an institution are to be considered personal data.3
Pursuant to Article 9(1)(b) of Regulation 2018/1725, personal data shall only be
transmitted if ‘[t]he recipient establishes that it is necessary to have the data transmitted
for a specific purpose in the public interest and the controller, where there is any reason
to assume that the data subject’s legitimate interests might be prejudiced, establishes that
it is proportionate to transmit the personal data for that specific purpose after having
demonstrably weighed the various competing interests’.
Only if these conditions are fulfilled and the processing constitutes lawful processing in
accordance with the requirements of Article 5 of Regulation 2018/1725, can the
transmission of personal data occur.
In your application, you do not put forward any arguments to establish the necessity to
have the personal data transmitted for a specific purpose in the public interest. Therefore,
the European Commission does not have to examine whether there is a reason to assume
that the data subject’s legitimate interests might be prejudiced.
Notwithstanding the above, please note that there are reasons to assume that the
legitimate interests of the data subjects concerned would be prejudiced by disclosure of
the personal data reflected in the document, as there is a real and non-hypothetical risk
that such public disclosure would harm their privacy.
Consequently, I conclude that access cannot be granted to the personal data, 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.
You may reuse this document free of charge, for non-commercial and commercial
purposes provided that the source is acknowledged, that you do not distort the original
1 Official Journal L 205 of 21.11.2018, p. 39.
2 Judgment of the Court of Justice of the European Union of 20 December 2017 in Case C-434/16,
Peter
Novak v Data Protection Commissioner, request for a preliminary ruling, paragraphs 33-35,
ECLI:EU:T:2018:560.
3 Judgment of the General Court of 19 September 2018 in case T-39/17,
Port de Brest v Commission,
paragraphs 43-44, ECLI:EU:T:2018:560
2
meaning or message of the document. Please note that the Commission does not assume
liability stemming from the reuse.
In case you 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 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 5/282
B-1049 Bruxelles, or by
email to: xxxxxxxxxx@xx.xxxxxx.xx
Yours faithfully,
(e-Signed)
Katleen Engelbosch
Enclosure: (1)
3
Electronically signed on 19/12/2018 17:24 (UTC+01) in accordance with article 4.2 (Validity of electronic documents) of Commission Decision 2004/563
