The case concerned a request for public access to a study concerning the efficacy of anti-tampering devices placed on medicines. Although the study was mentioned during a meeting of a Commission expert group, the Commission said that it does not hold the document.

The Ombudsman inquiry team met with representatives of the Commission. During the meeting, the Commission clarified that the study was an analysis of samples of anti-tampering devices, with members of the expert group referring to the results of this analysis during their discussion. No document concerning this analysis was distributed before or after the meeting of the expert group.

The Ombudsman closed the inquiry finding the Commission’s explanations to be reasonable. She encourages the Commission to provide clear explanations in similar future cases about why specific documents are not held.