EU watchdog finds EU guilty of maladministration
An investigation by an EU watchdog into text messages sent by European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen to Pfizer's CEO has found the EU s executive arm guilty of maladministration. Von der Leyen's aides have been heavily criticised for their handling of requests for publication of messages sent during negotiations over vaccine purchases.
After a thorough search, the commission initially claimed that it had not identified any text messages between Von der Leyen and Albert Bourla. The company is forecasting revenues of $36 bn 26 bn from vaccine sales this financial year.
The EU ombudsman's investigation found that the search carried out by commission officials for conversations by text message was restricted to an internal record of documents.
Von der Leyen's texts had not been stored there and the commission president's personal office had not been asked if any such messages existed.
The commission later claimed that it did not believe that text messages were covered by EU law regarding the requirement to store documents relating to policy as short-lived. O Reilly said that the commission's behaviour fell short of the levels of transparency required under EU law.
She said that no attempt was made to identify if any text messages existed because of the narrow way in which this public access request was treated. This falls short of the expectations of transparency and administrative standards in the commission.
Text messages need not be recorded, but text messages do fall under the EU transparency law and so relevant text messages should be recorded. It is not credible to claim otherwise. The commission was instructed to carry out a further comprehensive search for text messages, the existence of which was first reported in an interview with Von der Leyen about her personal diplomacy, which was first reported in the New York Times in April 2021.
O Reilly said that when it comes to the right of public access to EU documents, it is the content of the document that matters, not the device or form. Text messages should be treated as EU documents if they relate to EU policies and decisions. The EU administration needs to update its document recording practices to reflect this reality. After leaving Berlin for Brussels in 2019, Von der Leyen, who was Germany's defence minister before moving to Brussels, was engulfed in a similar scandal. She denied having anything to hide after it emerged that one of her two mobile phones had been wiped out by a German parliamentary committee.
The committee was looking into whether lucrative defence contracts were awarded to outside consultants without oversight and whether personal connections were behind those deals.
Von der Leyen, who was later cleared of responsibility, admitted to the German parliament in 2018 that negligence by overworked officials had led to mistakes during her time in the ministry.
Sophie in t Veld, a Dutch MEP, said the commission had become less transparent under Von der Leyen's leadership and called for the European Parliament to hold her accountable.
She said this is bigger than just text messaging between Von der Leyen and Pfizer. Transparency is the cornerstone of any relationship between an executive and a legislature that checks the power of the executive. The European Commission has become less transparent, less accountable to the European Parliament and more unhinged from European democracy. Pfizer has signed multiple contracts with the European Commission for its vaccine. The most recent reserved additional 1.8 bn doses at a higher price than previously set, to be delivered among the 27 EU member states between the end of 2021 and 2023.
The commission has been criticised for the high prices negotiated for the mRNA Covid vaccines, with one analysis suggesting that the EU paid €31 bn 25 bn above the cost of production.
A European Commission spokeswoman said on Friday they did not have any comment to make until their formal response to the findings had been given to the ombudsman.