Transitional allowance Tusk (2)
Dear Madam, Sir
Council Regulation 2016/300 of 29 February 2016 determining the emoluments of EU high-level public office holders applies inter alia to the President of the European Council.
In response to a previous access to documents request, which was registered under reference 23/0312-lk/vk, the Council of the European Union has provided a document showing the period during which former President of the European Council Donald Tusk received a transitional allowance.
Under the right of access to documents in the EU treaties, as developed in Regulation 1049/2001, and in follow-up to the above-mentioned request, I am requesting documents which contain the following information:
- All declarations made by former President of the European Council Donald Tusk done in relation to article 10.4 of Council Regulation 2016/300.
- All documents which show whether in the period Mr Tusk received a transitional allowance, remuneration from any gainful activity was deducted from the allowance.
Allow me some context to this request. Article 10.3 of Council Regulation 2016/300 states that if "during the period for which they are entitled to the monthly transitional allowance, the former public office holders concerned take up any gainful activity, the amount by which their gross monthly remuneration (i.e. before deduction of taxes), together with the allowance provided for in paragraph 1 of this Article, exceeds the remuneration, before deduction of taxes, which they were receiving as active public office holders under Articles 2, 5 and 6, shall be deducted from the allowance. In calculating the amount of remuneration received for the new activity, all forms of remuneration shall be included, except those representing the reimbursement of expenses."
Immediately after ceasing to hold office, i.e. 1 December 2019, Mr Tusk became president of the European People's Party. He held this post during the entire time he has received a transitional allowance from the Council. Mr Tusk also became leader of the Polish political party Civic Platform in 2021, partially during the period he was receiving a transitional allowance.
Although article 10.4 states that the declarations I request access to "shall be treated as confidential", I would like to argue that it is necessary to have this data transmitted to me for a specific purpose in the public interest.
As stated in the context of my previous request, I would like to establish as an investigative journalist, whether the payments of the transitional allowance to Donald Tusk have been made in conformity with the applicable rules.
I want to establish whether Mr Tusk has declared his gainful activities as president of the European People's Party and as leader of the Civic Platform party, and whether any remuneration for these activities have been properly deducted from his transitional allowance.
The objective in the public interest pursued by my request cannot be attained by other, less invasive means than the transmission of the actual data contained in the requested documents.
Sincerely
Peter Teffer
Your message has been received by the Transparency and Access to Documents Unit of the General Secretariat of the Council of the European Union. All requests for access to documents are treated on the basis of Regulation (EC) No 1049/2001 of 30 May 2001 regarding public access to
European Parliament, Council and Commission documents. The General Secretariat will reply to your request within 15 working days upon registration of your request. Requests received before 5 PM on a working day are registered on the same day. Requests received after 5 PM are registered on the first following working day.
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L'unité "Transparence et accès aux documents" du Secrétariat général du Conseil de l'Union européenne a bien reçu votre message. Toutes les demandes d'accès à des documents sont traitées conformément au règlement (CE) n° 1049/2001 du 30 mai 2001 relatif à l'accès du public aux documents du Parlement européen, du Conseil et de la Commission. Le Secrétariat général répondra à votre demande dans un délai de 15 jours ouvrables à compter de l'enregistrement de celle-ci. Les demandes reçues les jours ouvrables avant 17 heures sont enregistrées le jour même. Les demandes reçues après 17 heures sont enregistrées le premier jour ouvrable suivant.
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Ihre Nachricht ist bei der Dienststelle "Transparenz und Zugang zu Dokumenten" des General-sekretariats des Rates der Europäischen Union eingegangen. Alle Anträge auf Zugang zu Dokumenten werden gemäß der Verordnung (EG) Nr. 1049/2001 vom 30. Mai 2001 über den Zugang der Öffentlichkeit zu Dokumenten des Europäischen Parlaments, des Rates und der Kommission bearbeitet. Das Generalsekretariat wird Ihnen binnen fünfzehn Arbeitstagen nach Registrierung Ihres Antrags eine Antwort übermitteln. Anträge, die an einem Arbeitstag vor 17.00 Uhr eingehen, werden noch am selben Tages registriert. Nach 17.00 Uhr eingehende Anträge werden am erstfolgenden Arbeitstag registriert.
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Please find attached a letter from the General Secretariat of the Council
concerning your request for access to documents.
Yours sincerely,
Transparency
General Secretariat of the Council
Directorate-General Communication and Information - COMM
Directorate Information and Outreach
Information Services Unit / Transparency
Rue de la Loi/Wetstraat, 175 - B-1048 Bruxelles/Brussel - Belgique/België
[1]www.consilium.europa.eu | [2][email address]
Disclaimer: The views expressed are solely those of the writer and may not
be regarded as stating an official position of the Council of the EU
Clause de non-responsabilité: Les avis exprimés n'engagent que leur auteur
et ne peuvent être considérés comme une position officielle du Conseil de
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Dear Madam, Sir,
Please pass this on to the person who reviews confirmatory applications. I am filing a confirmatory application with regards to my access to documents request ref. 23/0892-lk/ns.
The Council identified four documents: three declarations made by Mr Tusk - in November 2019; in December 2019; and in December 2021 - and the assessment regarding Mr. Tusk’s transitional allowance [..] of November 2019.
As I explained in my initial request, my purpose is to establish whether Mr Tusk has declared his gainful activities as president of the European People's Party and as leader of the Civic Platform party, and whether any remuneration for these activities have been properly deducted from his transitional allowance.
While the existence of the three declarations *suggest* that Mr Tusk has declared his gainful activities as president of the European People's Party and as leader of the Civic Platform party, it does not yet provide evidence. I would like to request that the Council reviews whether it could provide partial disclosure to answer this question.
The identification of three documents also suggests that Mr Tusk has failed to submit a declaration in December 2020. Article 10.4 requires that former public officer holders submit a declaration "on 1 January of each year" after leaving office. Can the Council confirm that Mr Tusk failed to submit his declaration required on 1 January of 2021?
Secondly, I also informed that I requested the documents to establish whether any remuneration for Mr Tusk's activities have been properly deducted from his transitional allowance. According to the identified documents, there was only one assessment regarding Mr. Tusk’s transitional allowance, namely in November 2019.
I would request that the Council searches again. In the absence of any other assessments, I would ask: Can the Council clarify why there was no new assessment regarding Mr. Tusk’s transitional allowance? Shouldn't there have been at least two more, considering that Mr Tusk declared gainful activities n December 2019; and in December 2021 (presumably respectively as president of the EPP and as leader of the Civic Platform) - and that any income from them should have been deducted from the allowance?
Sincerely
Peter Teffer
Your message has been received by the Transparency and Access to Documents Unit of the General Secretariat of the Council of the European Union. All requests for access to documents are treated on the basis of Regulation (EC) No 1049/2001 of 30 May 2001 regarding public access to
European Parliament, Council and Commission documents. The General Secretariat will reply to your request within 15 working days upon registration of your request. Requests received before 5 PM on a working day are registered on the same day. Requests received after 5 PM are registered on the first following working day.
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L'unité "Transparence et accès aux documents" du Secrétariat général du Conseil de l'Union européenne a bien reçu votre message. Toutes les demandes d'accès à des documents sont traitées conformément au règlement (CE) n° 1049/2001 du 30 mai 2001 relatif à l'accès du public aux documents du Parlement européen, du Conseil et de la Commission. Le Secrétariat général répondra à votre demande dans un délai de 15 jours ouvrables à compter de l'enregistrement de celle-ci. Les demandes reçues les jours ouvrables avant 17 heures sont enregistrées le jour même. Les demandes reçues après 17 heures sont enregistrées le premier jour ouvrable suivant.
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Pour consulter le texte du règlement (CE) n° 1049/2001, cliquez ici:
http://eur-lex.europa.eu/LexUriServ/LexU...
Si le lien ne s'ouvre pas lorsque vous cliquez dessus, veuillez copier-coller l'adresse dans votre navigateur.
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Ihre Nachricht ist bei der Dienststelle "Transparenz und Zugang zu Dokumenten" des General-sekretariats des Rates der Europäischen Union eingegangen. Alle Anträge auf Zugang zu Dokumenten werden gemäß der Verordnung (EG) Nr. 1049/2001 vom 30. Mai 2001 über den Zugang der Öffentlichkeit zu Dokumenten des Europäischen Parlaments, des Rates und der Kommission bearbeitet. Das Generalsekretariat wird Ihnen binnen fünfzehn Arbeitstagen nach Registrierung Ihres Antrags eine Antwort übermitteln. Anträge, die an einem Arbeitstag vor 17.00 Uhr eingehen, werden noch am selben Tages registriert. Nach 17.00 Uhr eingehende Anträge werden am erstfolgenden Arbeitstag registriert.
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Den Text der Verordnung (EG) Nr. 1049/2001 finden Sie hier:
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Please find attached a letter from the General Secretariat of the Council
concerning your confirmatory application.
Yours sincerely,
Transparency
General Secretariat of the Council
Directorate-General Communication and Information - COMM
Directorate Information and Outreach
Information Services Unit / Transparency
Rue de la Loi/Wetstraat, 175 - B-1048 Bruxelles/Brussel - Belgique/België
[1]www.consilium.europa.eu | [2][email address]
Disclaimer: The views expressed are solely those of the writer and may not
be regarded as stating an official position of the Council of the EU
Clause de non-responsabilité: Les avis exprimés n'engagent que leur auteur
et ne peuvent être considérés comme une position officielle du Conseil de
l'UE
══════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════
Please find attached a letter from the General Secretariat of the Council
concerning your confirmatory application.
Yours sincerely,
Transparency
General Secretariat of the Council
Directorate-General Communication and Information - COMM
Directorate Information and Outreach
Information Services Unit / Transparency
Rue de la Loi/Wetstraat, 175 - B-1048 Bruxelles/Brussel - Belgique/België
[1]www.consilium.europa.eu | [2][email address]
Disclaimer: The views expressed are solely those of the writer and may not
be regarded as stating an official position of the Council of the EU
Clause de non-responsabilité: Les avis exprimés n'engagent que leur auteur
et ne peuvent être considérés comme une position officielle du Conseil de
l'UE
══════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════
Dear Mr Teffer,
Please find attached a letter from the General Secretariat of the Council
in reply to your confirmatory application for public access under
Regulation 1049/2001.
Yours sincerely,
Transparency
General Secretariat of the Council
Directorate-General Communication and Information - COMM
Directorate Information and Outreach
Information Services Unit / Transparency
Rue de la Loi/Wetstraat, 175 - B-1048 Bruxelles/Brussel - Belgique/België
[1]www.consilium.europa.eu | [2][email address]
Disclaimer: The views expressed are solely those of the writer and may not
be regarded as stating an official position of the Council of the EU
Clause de non-responsabilité: Les avis exprimés n'engagent que leur auteur
et ne peuvent être considérés comme une position officielle du Conseil de
l'UE
References
Visible links
1. http://www.consilium.europa.eu/
2. mailto:[email address]