[ParlTrack]

Proposal for a regulation
Recital 24

(24) Taking into account the high number of temporary staff within agencies and the need to ensure greater transparency and to define a consistent staff policy, it is necessary to create a new category of temporary staff and to lay down specific rules for this category.

2012/03/20
Committee: JURI

Monica MACOVEI

Proposal for a regulation
Recital 24

(24) Taking into account the high number of temporary staff within agencies and the need to ensure greater transparency and to define a consistent staff policy, it is necessary to create a new category of temporary staff and to lay down specific rules for this category.

2012/03/06
Committee: CONT

Monica MACOVEI, Martin EHRENHAUSER

Proposal for a regulation
Article 1 – point 5 a (new)

Staff Regulations
Article 11 a – paragraph 1

5a. Article 11a(1) shall be replaced by the following: '1. An official shall not, in the performance of his duties and save as hereinafter provided, deal with a matter in which, directly or indirectly, he has any personal interest such as to impair his independence, and, in particular, family and financial interests, or any other conflict of interest relating inter alia to previous employment undertaken in the past five years. All newly appointed officials shall be required, before starting work for the institution, to fill in and submit a comprehensive "declaration of interest" form which includes information about previous employers and previous clients covering at least the past five years. The first declaration of interest shall be submitted within 30 days from the date on which this Regulation enters into force, and then on 30 January in each year, irrespective of any change. In addition, a declaration of interest must be submitted at any time during the year if a change in circumstances has occurred or the individual changes his professional role, within 20 days after such change. The declaration of interest shall be scrutinised by the Appointing Authority when submitted for the first time and then annually or earlier if updates have been introduced. The declaration of interest shall be made public on the website of the institution to which the official belongs, within 20 days after its submission. The term "conflict of interest" shall be interpreted, in line with the definition promoted by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, as meaning a conflict between the public duties and private interests of an official, in which the public official has private-capacity interests which could improperly influence the performance of his official duties and responsibilities". In addition, a conflict of interest shall also be deemed to exist in situations where former officials could use insider knowledge, know-how, influence and contacts gained whilst in the service of the institutions to benefit their own or their subsequent employers' or clients' financial interests.';

2012/03/20
Committee: JURI

Monica MACOVEI, Martin EHRENHAUSER

Proposal for a regulation
Article 1 – point 5 b (new)

Staff Regulations
Article 11 a – paragraph 1 a (new)

5b. The following paragraph shall be inserted in Article 11a: '1a. On the basis of the scrutiny referred to in paragraph 1, the Appointing Authority shall relieve the official from responsibility in any matter in which he has a conflict of interest as defined in paragraph 1. Additional appropriate measures may also be taken to ensure that the risk of conflicts of interest is eliminated. All institutions shall regularly publish a list of all such disqualifications.';

2012/03/20
Committee: JURI

Monica MACOVEI, Martin EHRENHAUSER

Proposal for a regulation
Article 1 – point 5 c (new)

Staff Regulations
Article 12 b – paragraph 1

5c. Article 12b(1) shall be replaced by the following: '1. Subject to Article 15, an official wishing to engage in an outside activity, whether paid or unpaid, or to carry out any assignment outside the Union, shall first obtain the permission of the Appointing Authority. Permission shall be refused only if the activity or assignment in question is such as to interfere with the performance of the official's duties or to call into question his independence and loyalty to the institution or is incompatible with the interests of the institution.';

2012/03/20
Committee: JURI

Monica MACOVEI

Proposal for a regulation
Article 1 – paragraph 1 – point 5a (new)

Staff Regulations of Officials of the European Union
Article 11a – paragraph 1

5 a. In Article 11a, paragraph 1 shall be replaced by the following: 1. An official shall not, in the performance of his duties and save as hereinafter provided, deal with a matter in which, directly or indirectly, he has any personal interest such as to impair his independence, and, in particular, family and financial interests, or any other conflict of interest1 relating inter alia to previous employment undertaken in the past five years. All newly-appointed officials shall be required to fill and submit a comprehensive 'declaration of interest' form which includes information about previous employers and previous clients for at least the past five years before starting work for the institution. The first declaration of interest shall be submitted within 30 days from the date this Regulation entries into force, and then on the 30th of January of each year independently of any change. In addition, a declaration of interest must be submitted at any time during the year if a change in circumstances has occurred or the individual changes professional role, within 20 days after such change. The declaration of interest shall be scrutinised by the Appointing Authority when submitted for the first time and then annually or earlier if updates have been introduced. The declaration of interest shall be made public on the websites of each employment institution, within 20 days after its submission. __________________ 1 A conflict of interest shall be interpreted as meaning "a conflict between the public duties and private interests of a public official, in which the public official has private-capacity interests which could improperly influence the performance of their official duties and responsibilities" which is in line with the definition promoted by the OECD. In addition, a conflict of interest shall also be deemed to exist in situations where former officials could use insider knowledge, know- how, influence and contacts gained whilst in public office, to benefit their own, their subsequent employers' or clients' financial interests.

2012/03/06
Committee: CONT

Monica MACOVEI

Proposal for a regulation
Article 1 – paragraph 1 – point 5a (new)

Staff Regulations of Officials of the European Union
Article 11a – paragraph 1a (new)

5 b. In Article 11a the following paragraph shall be added after paragraph 1: 1a (new). On the basis of this scrutiny, the Appointing Authority shall relieve the official from responsibility in any matter in which he has such an interest as defined in paragraph 1. Additional appropriate measures may also be taken to ensure that the risk of conflicts of interest is eliminated. All EU institutions will regularly publish a list of all such recusals.

2012/03/06
Committee: CONT

Monica MACOVEI

Proposal for a regulation
Article 1 – paragraph 1 – point 5a (new)

Staff Regulations of Officials of the European Union
Article 12b – paragraph 1

5a. In Article 12b, paragraph 1 shall be replaced by the following: 1. Subject to Article 15, an official wishing to engage in an outside activity, whether paid or unpaid, or to carry out any assignment outside the Communities, shall first obtain the permission of the Appointing Authority. Permission shall be refused only if the activity or assignment in question is such as to interfere with the performance of the official's duties, to question his independence and loyalty towards the institution or is incompatible with the interests of the institution.

2012/03/06
Committee: CONT

Monica MACOVEI, Martin EHRENHAUSER

Proposal for a regulation
Article 1 – point 5 d (new)

Staff Regulations
Article 16

5d. Article 16 shall be replaced by the following: 'Article 16 An official shall, after leaving the service, continue to be bound by the duty to behave with integrity and discretion as regards the acceptance of certain appointments or benefits. Officials intending to engage in an occupational activity, whether gainful or not, within two years of leaving the service shall immediately inform in writing their institution thereof using the form provided by their service or otherwise in writing if such form is not available, before commencing the occupational activity in question. If the intended occupational activity involves lobbying or providing advice on lobbying Union institutions, bodies, offices or agencies, or could lead to the existence, possibility or appearance of a conflict with the legitimate interests of the institution, body, office or agency, the Appointing Authority shall, having regard to the interests of the service, forbid him from undertaking it for a period of two years after he has left the service and apply any other conditions it thinks fit. After consulting the Joint Committee, the institution shall notify its decision within 30 days formally and in writing to the official concerned. The Appointing Authority shall also apply sanctions in cases of breaches of this Article or of its decisions regarding specific occupational activities. Such sanctions shall include withholding fully or partially financial benefits accrued by the official or former official. Institutions, agencies and other bodies of the European Union shall regularly publish a list of all cases assessed under this Article 16 (to include the official's name, particulars of his former position and proposed new position, the proposed date of his departure from the service, the final assessment made under this Article, and any restrictions or limitations placed upon the acceptance of the role), without prejudice to the provisions of Regulation (EC) No 45/2001 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 18 December 2000 on the protection of individuals with regard to the processing of personal data by the Community institutions and bodies and on the free movement of such data1, and shall produce an annual report which includes statistical information and details of emerging trends. Leave on personal grounds may not be granted to an official, temporary or contractual agent for the purpose of his engaging in an occupational activity, whether gainful or not, which will involve lobbying or providing advice on lobbying an EU institution, body, office or agency, or which could lead to the existence, possibility or appearance of a conflict with the legitimate interests of his service. The term "lobbying" shall be interpreted, in accordance with the definition used by the EU Joint Transparency Register, as meaning activities carried out with the objective of directly or indirectly influencing the formulation or implementation of policy and decision- making processes of the Union institutions. ______________ 1 OJ L 8, 12.1.2001, p. 1.';

2012/03/20
Committee: JURI

Monica MACOVEI

Proposal for a regulation
Article 1 – paragraph 1 – point 5 a (new)

Staff Regulations of Officials of the European Union
Article 16

5a. Article 16 shall be replaced by the following: All officials shall, after leaving the service, continue to be bound by the duty to behave with integrity and discretion as regards the acceptance of certain appointments or benefits. Officials intending to engage in an occupational activity, whether gainful or not, within two years of leaving the service shall immediately inform in writing their institution thereof using the form provided by their service or in writing if such form is not available, before commencing said occupational activity. If the intended occupational activity involves activities related to lobbying1or providing advice on lobbying EU institutions, bodies, offices or agencies, or could lead to the existence, possibility or appearance of a conflict with the legitimate interests of the institution, body, office or agency, the Appointing Authority shall, having regard to the interests of the service, forbid him from undertaking it for a period of two years after he has left the service and apply any other conditions it considers fit. After consulting the Joint Committee, the institution shall notify its decision within 30 days formally and in writing to the respective official. The Appointing Authority shall also apply sanctions in cases of breaches of this article or its decisions regarding specific occupational activities. Such sanctions shall include withholding fully or partially financial benefits accrued by the official or former official. Institutions, agencies and other bodies of the European Union shall regularly publish a list of all cases assessed under Article 16 of these Regulations (to include official's name, former position, proposed new position, proposed date of move, final assessment under Article 16, and any restrictions or limitations placed upon the acceptance of the role) without prejudice to the provisions of Regulation No 45/2001, and will produce an annual report which includes statistical information and emerging trends. Leave on personal grounds may not be granted to an official, temporary or contractual agent for the purpose of his engaging in an occupational activity, whether gainful or not, which will involve lobbying or providing advice on lobbying an EU institution, body, office or agency, or which could lead to the existence, possibility or appearance of a conflict with the legitimate interests of his service. __________________ 1 Lobbying shall be interpreted as meaning "activities carried out with the objective of directly or indirectly influencing the formulation or implementation of policy and decision-making processes of the EU institutions" which is the definition used by the EU Joint Transparency Register.

2012/03/06
Committee: CONT

Monica MACOVEI

Proposal for a regulation
Article 1 – point 6 a (new)

Staff Regulations
Article 21 a – paragraph 2 a (new)

6a. The following paragraph shall be added to Article 21a: '2a. An official who informs his superiors of orders which he considered to be irregular or likely to give rise to serious difficulties shall not suffer any prejudice at the hands of his superiors or of the institution concerned.';

2012/03/20
Committee: JURI

Martin EHRENHAUSER, Monica MACOVEI, Eva LICHTENBERGER

Proposal for a regulation
Article 1 – point 6 a (new)

Staff Regulations
Article 22 a

6a. Article 22a shall be replaced by the following: 'Article 22a 1. Any official who, in the course of or in connection with the performance of his duties, becomes aware of or honestly believes in the existence of breaches of law, non-compliance by other officials with obligations deriving from fundamental ethical principles, waste and/or risks detrimental to the interests of the European Union shall have the right to inform and to provide supporting information to either his immediate superior or his Director General, or the persons in equivalent positions, or the European Anti-Fraud Office (OLAF) directly, if the matter concerns the competences of OLAF. Each institution must also provide a channel of communication which allows for the anonymous bilateral communication of messages in accordance with this Article. 2. Each institution shall ensure that any official who communicates information in accordance paragraph 1 ("whistleblower") receives prompt confirmation of receipt of that information and is informed within four weeks of the approximate amount of time needed for analysis of his message, which should not exceed six months. If that period is exceeded, the whistleblower shall be informed of the reasons for the need to extend it and of the estimated total duration. The same shall apply for every consecutive period of three months. 3. If preliminary analysis gives reason to believe that the matter involves areas falling within the competences of OLAF, the case shall be transferred to OLAF. The whistleblower shall be informed promptly of that transfer. In relation to the whistleblower and the way in which of whistle blowing is handled, OLAF shall have the same obligations as the initial recipient and his institution. 4. Each institution shall ensure that the identity of the whistleblower is treated as confidentially as possible. The institution and/or OLAF shall also be responsible for informing the whistleblower immediately of any breaches of, or risks to, anonymity and confidentiality. 5. Each institution shall ensure that each whistle blowing message is analysed. Analyses shall be impartial, adequate, prompt, properly documented, done by competent bodies and cannot be influenced by people accused or suspected by the whistleblower. The whistleblower shall have the right to be properly informed and heard before an analysis is finished. He shall also be informed of the final outcome and shall have the right to access the documents relating thereto. 6. The procedural, privacy and data protection rights of all persons involved, and the secrecy needs of the institutions, shall be respected throughout the processing of whistle blowing cases. 7. An official shall not suffer any prejudice as a result of his whistle blowing or the handling thereof by the institution, and shall be protected by the institution against any such prejudice that arises or could arise from acts by other officials or third parties. If the whistleblower suffers prejudice the relation of which could be attributed to his whistleblowing, cannot be excluded the institution shall be obliged to prove that such a relation did not exist. 8. Undue interference by an official in the processing of a whistle blowing case (for example, in the form of manipulation of an analysis or any act causing prejudice to a whistleblower) shall render that official liable to disciplinary action. An official who abuses the whistle blowing process shall also be liable to disciplinary action if it can be shown that he had knowingly raised a false concern or knowingly provided false information. 9. The institutions shall establish a system of internal support providing independent, confidential counselling to potential whistleblowers, and shall communicate their whistle blowing policy in a transparent and constructive manner. Mechanisms shall be established for the anonymous communication to whistleblowers of information concerning measures successfully taken in concrete cases, such as the detection of risks, avoidance of wrongdoing, sanctioning of wrongdoers, avoidance of retaliation and sanctioning of malicious whistle blowing. 10. The institutions shall monitor and regularly evaluate the application of this Article and shall take proactive measures, provide risk-awareness and whistle blowing training, with a view to promoting best practice in the application of these provisions. A coordinated system for the registration, tracking and tracing of disclosures shall be established, without prejudice to paragraph 6. 11. This Article shall also apply in any case in which an official exercises his rights under Article 21a or where an official has a duty to report any of the matters referred to in paragraph 1 of this Article.';

2012/03/20
Committee: JURI

Monica MACOVEI

Proposal for a regulation
Article 1 – paragraph 1 – point 6a (new)

Staff Regulations of Officials of the European Union
Article 21a – paragraph 2a (new)

6a. The following paragraph 2a shall be added to Article 21a: 2a. An official who has been informing his superiors of orders which he considered to be irregular or likely to give rise to serious difficulties shall not suffer any prejudicial effects on the part of his superiors and the institution.

2012/03/06
Committee: CONT

Monica MACOVEI

Proposal for a regulation
Article 1 – point 6 b (new)

Staff Regulations
Article 22 a – paragraph 1

6b. Article 22a(1) shall be replaced by the following: '1. Any official who, in the course of or in connection with the performance of his duties, becomes aware of facts which gives rise to a presumption of the existence of possible illegal activity, including fraud or corruption, detrimental to the interests of the Union, or of conduct relating to the discharge of professional duties which may constitute a serious failure to comply with the obligations of officials of the Union, shall without delay inform either his immediate superior or his Director- General or, if he considers it preferable, the Secretary-General, or the persons in equivalent positions, or the European Anti-Fraud Office (OLAF) direct. Such reporting shall not be deemed to constitute a breach of his duty of loyalty to the institution to which he belongs.';

2012/03/20
Committee: JURI

Martin EHRENHAUSER, Bart STAES, Monica MACOVEI, Amelia ANDERSDOTTER

Proposal for a regulation
Article 1 – paragraph 1 – point 6 a (new)

Staff Regulations of Officials of the European Union
Article 22a

6a. Article 22a shall be replaced by the following: 1. Any official who, in the course of or in connection with the performance of his duties, becomes aware of or honestly believes in the existence of breaches of law, non-compliance of other officials with obligations of fundamental ethical principles, waste and/or risks detrimental to the interests of the European Union has the right to inform and to provide supporting information to either his immediate superior or his Director General, or the persons in equivalent positions, or the European Anti-Fraud Office (OLAF) directly, if the matter concerns the competences of OLAF. Each institution must also provide a communication channel which allows an anonymous bidirectional communication of messages according to this article. 2. The institution assures that each official who communicates according to paragraph 1 (whistleblower) receives prompt confirmation of reception and within four weeks is informed about approximate duration needed for analyzing his message, which should not exceed six months. If this duration is exceeded, the whistleblower shall be informed about the reasons for this extended duration and the estimated total duration. The same applies for every consecutive period of three months. 3. If preliminary analysis gives reasons that the matter involves areas within the competences of OLAF, the case is transferred to OLAF. The whistleblower shall be informed promptly about that transfer. In relation to the whistleblower and the treatment of whistleblowing OLAF has the same obligations as a primary recipient and his institution. 4. Each institution assures that the identity of the whistleblower is treated as confidentially as possible. The institution and/or OLAF is also responsible for informing the whistleblower immediately of any breaches or risks to anonymity and confidentiality. 5. Each institution assures that each whistleblowing message is analyzed, analyses are impartial, adequate, prompt, properly documented, done by competent bodies and cannot be influenced by people accused or suspected by the whistleblower. The whistleblower has a right to be properly informed and heard before an analysis is finished. He is also informed about the final outcome and has the right to access the related documents. 6. The procedural, privacy and data protection rights of anybody involved as well as the secrecy needs of the institutions are respected throughout the treatment of the whistleblowing cases. 7. An official shall not suffer any prejudicial effects of his whistleblowing or its preparation on the part of the institution and shall be protected by the institution against any such effects that do or could arise from other officials or third parties. If the whistleblower suffers negative effects and a relation to his whistleblowing cannot be excluded, it is for the institution to prove that such a relation did not exist. 8. Undue interference into a whistleblowing process by an official (e.g. manipulation of an analysis or any detriment of a whistleblower) shall make him liable to a disciplinary action. Officials who misuse the whistleblowing process shall also be liable to a disciplinary action if it can be shown that the official had knowingly raised a false concern or knowingly provided false information. 9. The Institutions shall establish internal support to provide independent confidential counselling to potential whistleblowers. The whistleblowing policy shall be communicated in a transparent and constructive manner. Mechanisms shall be established to communicate successful measures in concrete cases such as detection of risks, avoidance of wrongdoing, sanctioning of wrongdoers, avoidance of retaliation and sanctioning of malicious whistleblowing to the staff in an anonymous way. 10. The Institutions shall monitor and regularly evaluate the application of these provisions and undertake proactive measures, provide risk awareness and whistleblowing training to support best usage of these provisions. A coordinated registration, tracking and tracing system for disclosures shall be established without prejudice to paragraph 6 of this article. 11. This article applies also in any case in which an official uses his rights under article 21a or where an official has a duty to report about issues mentioned in paragraph 1.

2012/03/06
Committee: CONT

Martin EHRENHAUSER, Monica MACOVEI, Eva LICHTENBERGER

Proposal for a regulation
Article 1 – point 6 b (new)

Staff Regulations
Article 22 b

6b. Article 22b shall be replaced by the following: 'Article 22b 1. A whistleblower who honestly believes that his rights under Article 22a have not been respected or that breaches of law have been committed by officials in grade AD 14 or above and/or by Members of his Institution or OLAF shall be entitled to inform and provide supporting information to the President of the Commission or of the Court of Auditors (if the areas of the competences of the Court of Auditors are concerned) or of the Council or of the European Parliament or to the European Ombudsman. 2. A whistleblower who honestly believes that his rights under paragraphs 1 and 3 have not been respected shall be entitled to inform and provide supporting information about suspected wrongdoing detrimental to the interests of the Union or suspected criminal behaviour on the part of officials and/or Members of his institution to any Member of the European Parliament and, if the matter falls within the competences of the Court of Auditors, to the Court of Auditors. 3. The rights and obligations laid down by Article 22a shall respectively apply to whistleblowers and recipients of information under this Article. A recipient of information under this Article shall have the right to question a previously involved recipient and/or institution about the way in which the whistle blowing has been handled and shall be provided with the necessary information enabling him to analyse the matter. 4. Where Union legislation confers on other bodies outside the Union institutions the necessary competences to confidentially assess matters (within the institutions) that could be the subject of disclosures by officials, officials may also address those bodies under the conditions laid down in this Article. 5. The recipients of information referred to in paragraphs 1, 2 and 4 shall also have the right to inform the public if they deem this to be necessary. 6. If a whistleblower is the subject of disciplinary or other procedures for non- compliance with the recipient-limitations laid down by Article 22a or by this Article and/or, for example, for having provided information to the media and/or the public, any measure taken against him shall take into account whether the information provided was true or the whistleblower believed it to be true. The public interests in the matter shall also be taken into account.';

2012/03/20
Committee: JURI

Monica MACOVEI

Proposal for a regulation
Article 1 – paragraph 1 – point 6a (new)

Staff Regulations of Officials of the European Union
Article 22a – paragraph 1

6a In Article 22a, paragraph 1 shall be replaced by the following: 1. Any official who, in the course of or in connection with the performance of his duties, becomes aware of facts which gives rise to a presumption of the existence of possible illegal activity, including fraud or corruption, detrimental to the interests of the Communities, or of conduct relating to the discharge of professional duties which may constitute a serious failure to comply with the obligations of officials of the Communities shall without delay inform either his immediate superior or his Director-General or, if he considers it preferable, the Secretary-General, or the persons in equivalent positions, or the European Anti-Fraud Office (OLAF) direct. Such reporting will not be considered as a breach of his duty of loyalty to the institution.

2012/03/06
Committee: CONT

Martin EHRENHAUSER, Bart STAES, Monica MACOVEI, Amelia ANDERSDOTTER

Proposal for a regulation
Article 1 – paragraph 1 – point 6b (new)

Staff Regulations of Officials of the European Union
Article 22b

6b. Article 22b shall be replaced by the following: 1. A whistleblower who honestly believes that his rights under Article 22a were not respected or who honestly believes in the existence of breaches of law by officials in grade AD 14 or above and/or by Members of his Institution or OLAF is entitled to inform and provide supporting information to the President of the Commission or of the Court of Auditors (if the areas of the competences of the Court of Auditors are concerned) or of the Council or of the European Parliament or to the European Ombudsman. 2. A whistleblower who honestly believes that his rights under article 22b paragraph 1 and 3 were not respected is entitled to inform and provide supporting information about suspected wrongdoing detrimental to the interest of the European Union or suspected criminal behaviour of the officials and/or Members of its institution to any member of the European Parliament and the Court of (if the areas of the competences of the Court of Auditors are concerned). 3. The rights and obligations of article 22a respectively apply to whistleblowers and recipients under article 22b. A recipient under article 22b has the right to question a previously involved recipient and/or institution about his treatment of the whistleblowing and shall be provided with the necessary information for his analysis. 4. If EU legislation entrusts other bodies - outside the EU institutions - with the necessary competences to confidentially assess matters (within EU-Institutions) that could be subject of disclosures by EU-officials, officials may also address them under the conditions mentioned in this article. 5. The recipients mentioned in paragraphs 1, 2 and 4 also have the right to inform the public if they deem that this is necessary. 6. If a whistleblower is undergoing disciplinary or other procedures for not respecting the recipient-limitations of art. 22a/b and/or e.g. by providing information to the media and public any measure taken against him must take into account if the information provided was true or the whistleblower believed it to be true. The public interests in the issue at stake must also be taken into account.

2012/03/06
Committee: CONT

18 Amendments of Monica MACOVEI related to 2011/0455(COD)

ParlTrack - 2011-2024