The 8th National Seminar of the European Network of Ombudsmen took place in Copenhagen from 20 to 22 October. The European Ombudsman profited from his presence in Copenhagen to reach out to Danish stakeholders, with the help of the European Parliament Information Office and the Commission Representation in Copenhagen. Two press briefings were organised with the help of the Danish Journalist Association.

On 19 October, the first press briefing took place in the "Europa-huset" with eight Danish journalists. Mr Diamandouros explained his work and his mandate, pointing out that he had received 16 complaints from Denmark and opened 5 in-depth investigations in 2010.

Mr Diamandouros stated that the high proportion of Danish cases leading to inquiries – compared to the number of complaints – was positive. However, the overall number of complaints from Denmark is disappointingly low. This constitutes clear indication that the Danish public is not sufficiently informed about where to turn in case of problems with the EU administration.

The Ombudsman quoted, as an important Danish case, the complaint about the European Medicines Agency, submitted by Danish researchers, which led to the disclosure of study reports on anti-obesity medicines. He pointed out that thousands of Danish NGOs, municipalities, companies, universities, and other organisations were involved in EU projects and programmes. Some of them do encounter problems with the EU institutions and, therefore, need to know about the services of the EO.

The journalists were specifically interested in the protection of whistleblowers at the EU level. Another question concerned the alleged failure of the EU institutions to deal with problems which ultimately led to the current financial crisis. The Ombudsman explained that there was whistleblowing protection at the EU level, but that it did not work sufficiently well.

The second meeting with journalists and with academics specialising in the field of media took place in the form of a working lunch. Mr Diamandouros provided additional details as regards the reform of Regulation 1049/2001 and his call for a more pro-active transparency policy in the EU administration. The participants were especially interested in his proposal for the appointment of information officers in the EU institutions. The discussion further centred on the different approaches to transparency (greater openness in line with the Nordic tradition versus emphasis on secrecy and data protection) still observable in the EU administration.

On the afternoon of 19 October, the Ombudsman gave a lecture at Copenhagen University. Some 65 students, professors, civil servants, and practising lawyers were present at the lecture, which concerned the possible adoption of an administrative law for the EU administration. More information about the lecture is available at: http://www.ombudsman.europa.eu/en/activities/calendarevent.faces/en/559/html.bookmark

On 20 October, the European Parliament Information Office organised a meeting with representatives of civil society organisations to learn about the Ombudsman's services. Participants were particularly interested in learning about the length of the Ombudsman's procedures and infringement complaints. The discussion also centred on why Danes make good use of the services of the Danish Ombudsman but do not tend to turn to the EO.  A possible explanation put forth is that Danes are satisfied with their national administration and do not feel the need to turn to other institutions.

In the afternoon of 20 October, the Ombudsman visited the European Environmental Agency as part of his efforts to visit all EU agencies in the Member States. More information about this visit is available at: http://www.ombudsman.europa.eu/en/activities/calendarevent.faces/en/556/html.bookmark