Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2012-10-25-Speech-4-502-000"
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"en.20121025.34.4-502-000"2
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"Mr President, ladies and gentlemen, here we are again to sum up the work of the European Ombudsman this year, like every other year. The overall assessment, in this case at least, is overwhelmingly positive. As I recall, the European Ombudsman’s powers are conferred by Article 298 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union and his main function within the network of European ombudsmen is to guarantee respect for the right of citizens to good administration and also, in particular, respect for the rights guaranteed by Article 41 of the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union, which states that every person has the right to have his or her affairs handled impartially, fairly and within a reasonable time by the institutions and bodies of the Union.
This year – and let us be clear that I am talking about 2011 – the European Ombudsman registered fewer complaints than in 2010; the total number fell from 2 667 to 2 510. What was new about these complaints is that more than 61 %, just over 61 % of these complaints were submitted using the internet. Of these 61 %, 53 % were submitted by citizens using the form on the European Ombudsman’s web portal. This fact is very dear to my heart as Chair of the Committee on Petitions, which for some time now has been asking for an internet service and web portal that are better tailored to citizens’ petitions.
The number of requests for information and clarifications fell significantly in 2011, and we all agree that this is because of the excellent guide produced by the European Ombudsman, which has succeeded in cutting the number of these requests for information. The number of petitions erroneously submitted to the European Ombudsman also fell, and by this I mean the number of petitions incorrectly sent to the Ombudsman because they were outside his mandate. This is certainly also due to two other information sources used and produced by the European Ombudsman’s office to help and facilitate the process for citizens. The Ombudsman also changed some procedures in 2011 to make them simpler. This work and these best practices introduced by the Ombudsman have undoubtedly had a positive impact on the results of the services that he provides.
Out of the total number of petitions presented by citizens, we should point out that the number of complaints against the European Commission is still quite high, and accounts for the largest share of all complaints, at 58 %. In the Commission’s defence, it should be explained that, because the Commission has executive powers, for citizens it is the most easily identifiable target, but this does not completely exonerate it from blame and Commissioner Šefčovič will, I am sure, have something to add on this matter. It is nice to know that Parliament, on the other hand, has reduced by almost half the number of complaints against it, while the number of complaints against the Council is rising. Most of the inquiries opened by the Ombudsman were completed (of 382 opened, 318 were completed) and I think that is an excellent performance.
My closing comment is that there is one flaw in this activity, and it is this: like all institutional persons involved in the protection of citizens’ rights, who have no actual powers for making sure citizens’ complaints are resolved, the Ombudsman’s procedures can conclude with a recommendation or in serious cases with a critical remark, but they cannot provide citizens with a direct solution."@en1
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