Ref. Ares(2020)3257478 - 23/06/2020
EUROPEAN COMMISSION
Secretariat-General
Directorate C - Transparency, Efficiency & Resources
The Director
Brussels
SG.C.1/CS/rc -
By registered mail with AR
Ms Margarida da Silva
Corporate Europe Observatory
Rue d' Edimbourg 26
1050 Brussels
Belgium
Copy by email:
ask+request-7989-
xxxxxxxx@xxxxxxxx.xxx
Subject:
Your application for access to documents – GESTDEM 2020/3127
Dear Ms da Silva,
I refer to your e-mail of 22 May 2020 in which you make a request for access to
documents, registered on 25 May 2020 under the above-mentioned reference number.
You request access to, I quote:
‘- Internal guidance for high level officials (i.e. European Commissioners, cabinet members
and Directors-General) and EU staff on how to handle interactions with interest
representatives while observing social distance practices put in place during the COVID-19
pandemic.
I am particularly interested in any internal guidance of what channels to use, what
constitutes a meeting, best practice advise, document archiving and lobby transparency.
- Guidance or any other documents stating that telephone calls are excluded from lobby
transparency requirements’.
We regret to inform you that the Commission does not hold any documents that would
correspond to the description given in your application.
As specified in Article 2(3) of Regulation (EC) No 1049/2001, the right of access as
defined in that regulation applies only to existing documents in the possession of the
institution.
Commission européenne/Europese Commissie, 1049 Bruxelles/Brussel, BELGIQUE/BELGIË - Tel. +32 22991111
Article 2(3) of Regulation (EC) No 1049/2001 provides, in particular, that ‘[t]his
Regulation shall apply to all documents held by an institution, that is to say, documents
drawn up or received by it and in its possession, in all areas of activity of the European
Union’.
Given that no such documents, corresponding to the description given in your
application, are held by the Commission, the Commission is not in a position to fulfil
your request.
In accordance with Article 7(2) of Regulation (EC) No 1049/2001, you are entitled to
make 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 Brussels,
or by email to:
xxxxxxxxxx@xx.xxxxxx.xx. Yours faithfully,
Tatjana Verrier
Director
2
Electronically signed on 23/06/2020 09:43 (UTC+02) in accordance with article 4.2 (Validity of electronic documents) of Commission Decision 2004/563
