Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2010-11-25-Speech-4-019"
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"en.20101125.4.4-019"2
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"Mr President, the annual report of the Ombudsman is a good example of how we should present our activities to the public. The report is comprehensible, concise and to the point. I therefore highly applaud your efforts and the trouble you have gone to, and I would also like to congratulate you personally in this way. However, I would, at the same time, like to state at this point that I see one systemic problem in the activities of the office of the Ombudsman. That problem is public awareness. Let us concede, namely, that the European Union, as an international organisation, is, to a considerable extent, hard to understand, and not only in terms of its grants, but also in the area of its powers, institutions, decision-making processes and adopted policies and legislation. What I mean by this is that it is hard to understand for the ordinary citizen. The same applies logically to the office of the Ombudsman as well. I am quite sure that if we conducted a survey of European citizens regarding the role of the European Ombudsman and his powers and activities, we would unfortunately find that he is perceived as someone far away and, in many cases, people will not even know that he exists. The facts are relatively clear. A great majority of the complaints submitted by my fellow countrymen from the Czech Republic did not fall within the remit of the European Ombudsman. The situation is no different for other Member States.
When we debated the 2008 report in this place, everyone here called for greater public awareness. Extensive information campaigns were proposed, and website launches were considered. However, I myself made a trial attempt to post a complaint on your website yesterday. I have to say that the interactive guide was too complicated and, to tell the truth, incomprehensible to the ordinary citizen. The actual complaint form is similarly complicated. It reminds me a little of the tax return forms in the Czech Republic, which ordinary citizens cannot complete without a tax advisor. To tell the truth, your website discourages citizens from making complaints. I would therefore like to make an appeal for simplification.
Another thing I consider hugely important is to reduce the time needed for handling cases. Ultimately, we know that if someone makes a complaint, it is of the utmost importance from the perspective of trust that the complaint be handled as quickly as possible, and that the complainant receives a response as quickly as possible. Additionally, if a given issue is not within the competence of the body to which the complaint is addressed, the complaint should be referred directly to the national or regional ombudsman that has the relevant powers.
Ladies and gentlemen, too much communication kills off information. Too much information kills off European citizens. In my opinion, it should be a priority of the Ombudsman not only to resolve but also to prevent incorrect bureaucratic procedures. I therefore consider it key for this institution not to be taken advantage of for media campaigns, and for there to be no extension of its powers. After his election, Ombudsman Diamandouros said: ‘I will continue the effort to improve the quality of European Union administration’. I would therefore like to ask in conclusion what systemic problem have you specifically managed to improve, and what do you intend to turn your attention to in the coming year. I wish you every success in finding systemic solutions."@en1
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