Breakthrough for whistleblowers as EU institutions agree on new law to protect them from retaliation

Thanks to the high profile revelations by whistleblowers in recent years, including the #luxleaks case and #PanamaPapers, and to the campaigning efforts of NGOs, trade unions and journalists, the final result is an ambitious text that will set minimum standards for how whistleblowers should be protected across the European Union.

Deal reached to protect whistleblowers a victory for the truth

Whistleblowers

The Greens/EFA group have been the driving force campaigning for whistleblower protection and it's been a long road to get here, given that there was no official support for an EU-wide directive when we started campaigning years ago

What's coming up in Parliament

Greens/EFA priorities 11-14 March 2019

A look ahead to the February plenary session in the European Parliament in Strasbourg and the Greens/EFA priority issues on the agenda

EU Justice Programme final trilogue

Quote from Heidi Hautala MEP

Today, final trilogue negotiations between the European Parliament, Commission and Council were concluded on the EU Justice Programme for the years 2021-2027, which includes greater support for citizens, civil society and legal experts.

European Court of Justice to decide if transparency over cancer studies should override commercial secrets

On the 7th March 2019, the European Court of Justice will deliver its verdict in a landmark case pitting the public interest in transparency against the commercial interests of private companies. The case was brought by four Greens/EFA MEPs in May 2017, after EFSA claimed that it had used unpublished studies by Monsanto, Syngenta and Cheminova to conclude that glyphosate was not carcinogenic.

European Parliament committees support Kovesi for European Chief Prosecutor

European Public Prosecutor's Office

The winning candidate in both committees is Laura Codruta Kovesi, the former head of the Romanian Anti-Corruption Agency (DNA), who has been widely celebrated for her efforts in prosecuting ex-officials for high-level graft and corruption in the country.

Citizens’ Rights improved as European Parliament Strengthens the Role of the EU Ombuds(wo)man

To improve democracy and the rights of citizens in Europe, the Greens/EFA decided to strengthen the European Ombuds(wo)man’s office so that it could better investigate maladministration and conflicts of interest. We also managed to secure a role for the Ombuds(wo)man’s Office in important areas such as whistleblower protection and sexual harassment.

Trial of Catalan political prisoners

Press release from EFA MEPs J-M Terricabras & Jordi Solé

EFA MEPs from Catalonia have spoken out in the European Parliament this week as the trial gets underway in Madrid of the Catalan political prisoners - government ministers, civil society leaders and former Speaker of the Catalan parliament - for seeking to assert Catalonia's right to self-determ...

Palm oil

Quote Bas Eickhout

"The battle is not over, the proposal is under consultation for the next four weeks so we, along with civil society and the public, still have time to close these loopholes and clamp down on destructive palm oil entering the EU. Green victories never come without a fight." Bas Eickhout, Greens/EFA rapporteur on the file and leading candidate of the European Green Party in the European elections

Expansion of Frontex should only happen with stronger fundamental rights

Frontex

The members of the Committee on Justice and Home Affairs have just voted on their position on the mandate for the negotiations on the European Border Management Agency, Frontex. The Greens/EFA were able to assert their demands to hold Frontex accountable for possible violations of fundamental rights, to strengthen the role of the Officer for Fundamental Rights and not to allow the European Border Management Agency to deport people from third countries to other third countries.

Sometimes the Truth Needs Friends

Whether you are five years old or eighty-five years old, anyone who tells the truth deserves to be protected, but right now those who do are at risk of getting fired, sued, harassed — and worse — by those who seek to silence them. The good news is that — in the European Union at least — all of this whistleblower harassment could soon become a thing of the past.

Corporate Europe Observatory report on Council lobbying

Quote from Benedek Jávor MEP

A new report from Corporate Europe Observatory: "Captured states: when EU governments are a channel for corporate interests” reveals that the complex and opaque nature of decisions made in the Council of Ministers often benefits corporate interests over those of citizens.