Ms Ursula von der Leyen President European Commission

 

Dear President,

Thank you for your letter of 16 June 2025 informing me about the European Commission’s response to my Office’s suggestions for improvement in the above case.

I note that, for work trips paid for by third parties, the Commission will now record the nature of these third parties, an estimate of the costs borne by them, and the assessments of risks of real, potential or perceived conflicts of interest. These improvements are included in new guidance[1] and the dedicated IT tool for missions and authorised travel.

I would like to thank the Commission for its constructive engagement as regards the suggestions made, specifically its genuine efforts to ensure that work trips paid for by third parties do not give rise to conflicts of interest.

Yours sincerely,

 

Teresa Anjinho

European Ombudsman

Strasbourg,11/07/2025

 

[1] Commission Decision on the general provisions for implementing Articles 11, 12 and 13 of Annex VII to the

Staff Regulations of Officials and on authorised travel, C(2025)2495. A copy of which is available here: https://www.era.europa.eu/sites/default/files/2025-06/mb%20decision%20376%20-%20annex.pdf?t=1751549636.