Meeting with the Tony Blair Institute on 19-06-2024
Alexander Fanta made this access to documents request to Neighbourhood and Enlargement Negotiations Automatic anti-spam measures are in place for this older request. Please let us know if a further response is expected or if you are having trouble responding.
Dear Neighbourhood and Enlargement Negotiations,
Under the right of access to documents in the EU treaties, as developed in Regulation 1049/2001, I am requesting documents which contain the following information:
All documents related to a meeting between Commissioner Varhelyi's cabinet and the Tony Blair Institute on 19 June 2024. This is meant to include meeting minutes, e-Mails, briefing notes, etc.
Yours faithfully,
Alexander Fanta
Follow the Money
Rue Auguste Orts 2
1000 Brussels
Dear Sir or Madam,
We hereby acknowledge the receipt of your request for access to documents
sent on 24/09/2024 and registered on 25/09/2024 under the case number
2024/4995.
We will handle your request within 15 working days as of the date of
registration. The time-limit expires on 16/10/2024. We will let you know
if we need to extend this time limit for additional 15 working days.
To find more information on how we process your personal data, please see
[1]the privacy statement.
Yours faithfully,
Directorate-General for Neighbourhood and Enlargement Negotiations -
Access to Documents
European Commission
References
Visible links
1. https://ec.europa.eu/info/principles-and...
Dear Sir or Madam,
We hereby acknowledge the receipt of your request for access to documents
sent on 26/09/2024 and registered on 26/09/2024 under the case number
2024/4998.
We will handle your request within 15 working days as of the date of
registration. The time-limit expires on 17/10/2024. We will let you know
if we need to extend this time limit for additional 15 working days.
To find more information on how we process your personal data, please see
[1]the privacy statement.
Yours faithfully,
Directorate-General for Competition - Access to Documents
European Commission
References
Visible links
1. https://ec.europa.eu/info/principles-and...
Dear Mr Fanta,
Please find attached a message concerning your request for access to
Commission documents registered under the above case number 2024/4995.
Please acknowledge the receipt of this message by return email.
Kind regards,
NEAR ACCDOC Team
Dear Neighbourhood and Enlargement Negotiations,
Please pass this on to the person who reviews confirmatory applications.
I am filing the following confirmatory application with regards to my access to documents request 'Meeting with the Tony Blair Institute on 19-06-2024'.
I note that document 1 mentions an invitation to a panel discussion on Ukraine accession. I ask to search for the invitation in question and disclose it, as it is clearly connected to the meeting and therefore within the scope of my request.
I would also like to appeal against the redaction of the names of cabinet members and TBI staff from the documents released to me. I note that Szabolcs Horvath is listed as interlocutor of TBI in the transparency register for that meeting, he therefore should also be named on the documents.
As regards the representatives of the Tony Blair Institute, I note a recent finding of the European Ombudsman regarding the redaction of names of lobbyists. “The Ombudsman is of the view that lobbying activities should be transparent, as this enables citizens to understand who or what interest informed a decision and to participate themselves in that decision-making as part of exercising their democratic rights,” it found. “Interest representatives meeting with an EU institution should therefore not expect that this activity would remain secret. In other words, the Ombudsman finds it questionable whether, generally, a person lobbying an EU institution can legitimately expect that this activity will not be made transparent.” (See: https://www.ombudsman.europa.eu/en/decis...)
To this general observation I would like to add that it appears that the TBI representative in question is likely Sanna Marin, the former Finnish prime minister. Even after leaving office, she continues to be a public person who's actions, including professional activity for TBI, are frequently reported on in the press. I note that I make my request as journalist and wish to investigate the role of Sanna Marin's lobbying for TBI in Brussels. I therefore regard that there is sufficient public interest to disclose her name on the document.
Yours faithfully,
Alexander Fanta
Follow the Money
Rue Auguste Orts 2
1000 Bruxelles
Dear Sir or Madam,
We hereby acknowledge the receipt of your confirmatory request for case
2024/4995, sent on 13/10/2024 and registered on 14/10/2024.
We will handle your confirmatory request within 15 working days as of the
date of registration. The time-limit expires on 05/11/2024. We will let
you know if we need to extend this time limit for additional 15 working
days.
Yours faithfully,
Secretariat-General - Access to Documents
European Commission
Dear applicant,
We are writing concerning your request for access to Commission documents
registered on 26 September 2024 under case number EASE 2024/4998.
We are currently working on your request. However, we have not yet been
able to gather all the elements necessary to carry out a full analysis of
your request. We will not be able to send you the reply within the
prescribed time limit expiring on 17 October 2024. In order to retrieve
the documents requested, large files have to be examined.
Therefore, in line with Article 7(3) of [1]Regulation (EC) No 1049/2001,
we need to extend this time limit by 15 additional working days. The new
time limit expires on 8 November 2024.
We apologise for any inconvenience this may cause.
Kind regards,
SG D Secretariat
References
Visible links
1. https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/...
Dear FANTA, Alexander ,
Please find attached the electronic version of European Commission
Decision C(2024)8485 as adopted by the European Commission on 24/11/2024
concerning the request 2024/4995.
In accordance with the Terms and Conditions of this portal, please note
that this decision is being formally notified pursuant to article 297 TFEU
through this electronic platform only.
Yours sincerely,
Access to documents team - SG.C.1