Access to Information in the European Union: A Comparative Analysis of EC and Member State Legislation

In the last 15 years, transparency has been one of the central themes in the European integration process. By providing more openness about its activities, the European Union tries to bring itself closer to its citizens. Transparency is considered one of the main methods to relieve the 'democratic deficit'. One way of increasing transparency is to grant citizens a right to access information. Another way is to actively publish information. Transparency is not an exclusive feature of European integration. On the contrary, inspiration for policies on access to information is mostly drawn from the sometimes longstanding experiences of the member states. Access to Information in the European Union provides for a detailed and useful overview of EC and member state legislation in the field of access to information, highlighting the similarities and differences between national legislation of different member states.