Select Committee on European Scrutiny Thirteenth Report


ANNEX

Article 4

Exceptions

The institutions shall refuse access to documents where disclosure could seriously undermine the protection of:

a)  the public interest and in particular:

    -  public security,
    -  defence and international relations,
    -  relations between and/or with the Member States or Community and non-Community institutions,
    -  financial or economic interests,
    -  monetary stability,
    -  the stability of the Community legal order,
    -  court proceedings,
    -  inspections, investigations and audits,
    -  infringement proceedings, including the preparatory stages thereof,
    -  the effective functioning of the institutions;

b)  privacy and the individual and in particular:

    -  personal files,
    -  information, opinions and assessments given in confidence with a view to recruitments or appointments,
    -  an individual's personal details or documents containing information such as medical secrets which, if disclosed, might constitute an infringement of privacy or facilitate such an infringement;

c)  commercial and industrial secrecy or the economic interests of a specific natural or legal person and in particular:

    -  business and commercial secrets,
    -  intellectual and industrial property,
    -  industrial, financial, banking and commercial information, including information relating to business relations or contracts,
    -  information on costs and tenders following award procedures;

d)  confidentiality as requested by the third party that supplied the document or the information or as required by the legislation of the Member State.



 
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