The EU’s public-interest watchdog launched a probe Monday of the European Commission’s process for appointing special advisers in what Ombudsman Emily O’Reilly called an effort to avoid conflicts of interest.
Use of outside experts such as former commissioners, politicians, business leaders and academics can expose the Commission to “inappropriate influence on policy-making,” said the ombudsman’s office, adding that their “high-level access, coupled with the fact that many of the advisers have outside interests, heightens the importance of anticipating any possible conflict.”
In a statement, O’Reilly said, “My aim is to ensure that the public can be confident, from a conflicts of interest perspective, about the choice of expert and to ensure that the advisers themselves can be confident that the system works well by being made fully aware of the rules concerning their appointments.”
The investigation comes after a complaint from EU transparency groups that Commissioners were using such outside advisers without checking for possible conflicts. Their criticism focused on the appointment of former German politician Edmund Stoiber as a special adviser to the Commission on its “better regulation” proposals for cutting red tape.
In launching the inquiry, O’Reilly said she was not taking aim at any specific appointment but would examine the process for naming advisers. She noted the importance of checking for potential conflicts, saying, “Most of these advisers who have direct access to commissioners are part-time, some are unpaid and some are retired, however many do work elsewhere in a private capacity.”
Every year the Commission names around 40 such special advisers. This year’s group includes former commissioners Mario Monti and Michel Barnier and former Commission secretary general Catherine Day. Stoiber withdrew his appointment in December 2015.
The Commission said Monday it had concluded its own inquiry into the appointment of Stoiber. “The Commission fails to see any signs of maladministration on this issue,” said Margaritis Schinas, the Commission’s chief spokesman.
Transparency advocates lauded the ombudsman’s decision. “It has been clear for some time that the Commission is not rigorous enough when scrutinizing special advisers for conflicts of interest,” said Vicky Cann, a campaigner at Corporate Europe Observatory.
The Commission also announced Monday that it would implement new transparency measures covering its use of advisory expert groups, which are also made up of people from outside the EU institutions. Currently about 6,000 experts are working on such panels.
“When we design rules and policies we need the help of outside expertise to help us get it right,” said European Commission Vice President Frans Timmermans. “Citizens rightly expect this to be done in a transparent and balanced way.”
O’Reilly has been critical of the Commission’s use of such expert groups, saying it had not been vigilant in checking for conflicts of interest and had failed to guarantee of balance between various advocacy groups in putting them together.
The new measures adopted Monday include a clearer website, systematic public applications for membership, more commitment to disclosing the working methods of the groups such as minutes and the possibility for the groups to draft minority opinions.