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Relations with the European Ombudsman

The European Ombudsman can receive and examine complaints concerning perceived instances of maladministration by EU institutions or other EU bodies.

The European Ombudsman and the Commission

The Ombudsman opened 348 inquiries in 2022 (compared to 338 inquiries in 2021) of which 197 for the Commission (compared to 210 in 2021).

The Commission remains the main addressee of the Ombudsman’s inquiries: 57.1% (compared to 56.8% in 2021), as the institution with the most direct dealings with citizens.

Every year, the Commission agrees with around three quarters of the European Ombudsman’s proposals (proposals for a solution, suggestions for improvement and recommendations).

Out of her 330 closed inquiries in 2022, 152 were settled by the institutions, solutions achieved, solutions partly achieved, suggestions for improvement accepted by the institutions. No maladministration was found in 122 cases, no further inquiries were needed in 42 cases, and only in 15 cases there was a finding of maladministration (4.5%).

In 2022, 152 cases (46.1%) were settled by the institutions or solutions achieved. 122 (37%) ended up with a finding of no maladministration. For 42 (12.7%) cases, no further inquiries were required. 15 inquiries ended up with a finding of maladministration. 4 (1.2%) cases were dealt by a Court. In 1 case (0.3%), the solution was rejected.

In 2022, 95,5% of the cases end with a finding of no maladministration either because there was no instance of maladministration or because a satisfying outcome was achieved.

Striving for good administration

The Commission strives to ensure good administration. The Ombudsman, after diligent inquiries, in a large majority of cases closes inquiries with no finding of maladministration on the side of the Commission.

In most cases where the Ombudsman does issue recommendations or proposals for a solution or suggestions for improvement, the Commission accommodates these proposals.

However, in some cases, the Commission cannot follow the proposals for reasons related to the public interest or because it disagrees. In these cases, the Commission explains its reasons.

Latest news:

In its latest ‘Annual Report’, published in May 2023, the Ombudsman mentioned some ‘star cases’ relating to the Commission.

  • The Ombudsman launched an inquiry with a view of making sure that the Commission ensures a balanced representation of interests in relation to the EU’s Common Agricultural Policy and suggested that the Commission proactively publishes more material on national plans to implement #NewCap and that the #EuAgri meets more non-agricultural sector representatives.
  • She launched an inquiry on how the Commission ensures transparent interactions with the tobacco industry in the context of the WHO Convention on Tobacco Control (written records of meetings, access to documents issues).
  • Following her BlackRock inquiry, she welcomes the Commission’s proposal to reject tender applicants if they have a professional conflicting interest.
  • Concerning her inquiry on how the Commission deals with the ‘revolving doors’ issues, she asked the Commission to forbid jobs temporarily if risks cannot be offset or restrictions cannot be enforced and publish decisions on staff’s members new jobs faster.
  • She launched a public consultation on transparency in EU environmental decision-making (with follow-up steps in 2023).
  • In the context of the Recovery and Resilience Facility (RRF), she asked the Commission how it will ensure accountability when it comes to recovery fund spending so that the public can easily see which projects are being financed and whether promised milestones have been reached. The Ombudsman also received complaints about refused access to documents related to the recovery plans of Germany, France, the Netherlands, Sweden, and Denmark. In her analyses, she stressed that the importance of the RRF must be matched by high transparency standards.
  • She published a set of practical recommendations for the EU administration on the recording of work-related text and instant messages. The recommendations say that work-related text and instant messages should be recognised as EU documents, technological solutions should be put in place to enable the easy recoding of such messages, and staff should have clear guidance on how such messages should be recorded. The Ombudsman indicates that the Commission said it would issue further guidance on modern communication tools such as text messages
  • Given the increasing number of delays in handling access to document requests, she launched an inquiries to look into the issue. It concerned the length of time it takes the Commission to deal with public access requests.
  • The Ombudsman criticised the Commission’s delay in setting up a monitoring mechanism for border management by the Croatian authorities. She asked the Commission to provide up to-date information on how the monitoring mechanism is working and whether it is independent and effective. She also asked the Commission to report back by early 2023 on the steps it has taken to strengthen fundamental rights compliance in Croatian border operations receiving EU funds.
  • She found that the Commission did not sufficiently assess the human rights impact of projects with potential surveillance capabilities funded by the Emergency Trust Fund for Africa. She asked that, in the future, each project be assessed on human rights grounds.
  • Request for clarifications were submitted on the impact of artificial intelligence on the EU administration and public administrations in the EU, on how the Commission makes available information about meetings between Commissioners and organisations of self-employed individuals, on how the Commission ensures respect of human rights in international trade agreements, and on how the Commission provides information to unsuccessful bids in the context of call for tenders and proposals.

The European Ombudsman Award for Good Administration

The Award aims to recognise initiatives, projects and other types of work by different departments of the EU’s institutions, agencies, offices and other bodies that have a visible and direct positive impact on the lives of people in Europe and beyond. In all editions of the award, the European Commission won several awards.

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Legal references

Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union:

Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union:

  • Article 41 of the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union defines a ‘right to good administration’: ‘Every person has the right to have his or her affairs handled impartially, fairly and within a reasonable time by the institutions, bodies, offices and agencies of the Union.’
  • Article 43 of the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union provides that ‘any citizen of the Union and any natural or legal person residing or having its registered office in a Member State has the right to refer to the European Ombudsman cases of maladministration in the activities of the institutions, bodies, offices or agencies of the Union, with the exception of the Court of Justice of the European Union acting in its judicial role.

Regulation (EC) 1049/2001 regarding public access to European Parliament, Council and Commission documents

European Ombudsman’s reports:

Handling of personal data

Related links