Transparency of Council proceedings

In the debate concerning the transparency of the Council's proceedings, attention is focused on two main points:

•public access to the Council's proceedings;
•public access to Council minutes and the attached statements giving details of the voting.

Since amending its Rules of Procedure in December 1993, the Council has pursued the following policy: as a general rule, its deliberations remain secret but it holds some open debates (e.g. on the Presidency's six-monthly work programme). On the question of public access and details of the votes cast by Member States, the Council adopted (in October 1995) a Code of Conduct which enables the public to gain access whenever the Council is acting in its legislative role. The practical arrangements for such access were laid down by the Permanent Representatives Committee on 8 November, in a report concerning the internal procedure to be followed.

Under the Treaty of Amsterdam, a new Article on transparency was written into the EC Treaty (Article 255). It states that any citizen of the European Union and any natural or legal person residing or having its registered office in a Member State has a right of access to European Parliament, Council or Commission documents.

As a result of Article 255, which was implemented by the Regulation of 30 May 2001, the Council once again amended its Rules of Procedure. The general public can now consult the results and explanations of Council votes and all Council statements on the application or interpretation of legislation under preparation.

See:

•Coreper
•Council of the European Union
•Governance
•Transparency (access to documents)