What changed

2. MOTION FOR A EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT RESOLUTION

2. European Parliament resolution of 7 May 2025 with observations forming an integral part of the decision on discharge in respect of the implementation of the general budget of the European Union for the financial year 2023, Section VIII – European Ombudsman (2024/2027(DEC))

with observations forming an integral part of the decision on discharge in respect of the implementation of the general budget of the European Union for the financial year 2023, Section VIII – European Ombudsman

B. whereas Article 228 of the Treaty on the functioningFunctioning of the European Union provides for the election of a European Ombudsman (the ‘Ombudsman’) by the European Parliament who shall be empowered to receive complaints from any citizen of the Union or any natural or legal person residing or having its registered office in a Member State concerning instances of maladministration in the activities of the Union institutions, bodies, offices or agencies, with the exception of the Court of Justice of the European Union acting in its judicial role, and to examine such complaints and report on them;

C. whereas Regulation (EU, Euratom) 2021/1163 of the European Parliament of 24 June 2021 lays down the regulations and general conditions governing the performance of the Ombudsman’s duties (Statute of the European Ombudsman);

1. Notes that the budget of the Ombudsman falls under MFF headingHeading 7 ’European‘European public administration’, which amounted to a total of EUR 12,3 billion, i.e. 6,4 % of Union budget spending, in 2023; notes that the budget of the Ombudsman represented 0,11 % of MFF headingHeading 7 appropriations;

4. Notes that the budget of the Ombudsman amounted to EUR 13 212 447 in 2023, which represents an increase of EUR 990 339 (i.e. +8,1+ 8,1 %) compared to 2022; takes note, from the Ombudsman’s replies to the questionnaire submitted by the Committee on Budgetary Control for the 2023 budgetary discharge (the ‘Questionnaire’), that this increase is mainly due to salary adjustments and two additional posts that were needed to reinforce the Ombudsman’s core activities;

5. Notes that the budget monitoring efforts during the financial year 2023 resulted in a budget implementation rate of 95,39 %, representing a decrease of 1,58 % compared to 2022; notes that the current year payment appropriations execution rate was 97,58 %, representing an increase of 1,31 % compared to 2022, which led to a decrease in automatic carry-overs from 3,73 % (or EUR 442 209) in 2002 to 2,42 % (or 304EUR 550304 EUR)550) in 2023; regrets, nevertheless, the lower execution rate of the automatic carry-overs of appropriations from the previous year, which in 2023 was 73,27 % compared to 92,59 % in 2022; calls for an improvement in this regard;

17. Highlights the fact that, in 2023, following an own-initiative inquiry that revealed that, when individuals seek a review of an access decision, known as a confirmatory request, the Commission misses the deadlines set out in the law in 85 % of cases, the Ombudsman urged the European Commission to promptly address systemic delays in processing access to documents requests; calls for the swift implementation of the Ombudsman’s urgent recommendation for a thorough reassessment to ensure compliance with the deadlines set out in Union law, such as Regulation (EC) No 1049/2001;1049/2001 of the European Parliament and of the Council ; commends the Ombudsman for its special report to the European Parliament, asking the institution for its formal support in getting the Commission to act on her recommendation; recalls that the Ombudsman discussed the report with Members of the European Parliament in the Committee for Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs in November 2023;2023 ;

18. Notes with great concern that the Ombudsman receives many complaints from citizens about extreme delays in gaining access to requested documents; supports the Ombudsman’s views that access delayed is effectively access denied and that administrative processes should be streamlined to ensure that citizens receive access to documents in a timely manner;manner ;

21. Regrets that the post of the Secretary-General of the Ombudsman has been vacant for more than two years, namely since 1 September 2022; notes from the Questionnaire that “as‘as a courtesy to the new Ombudsman, who will be elected by the end of 2024, the current Ombudsman decided to leave the post vacant for her successor to decide on the appointment”;appointment’; calls on the next Ombudsman to make sure that the periods of vacancy of management positions remain as short as possible and are not longer than the time necessary for recruitment of new staff in those positions;

22. Commends the Ombudsman for its call for expressions of interest for jobs (inquiry officers) which was successfully concluded in 2023 with the establishment of a reserve list of 19 candidates, 6 of them having been recruited the same year; notes that this has allowed the Ombudsman to reduce the time needed for recruitment which has been an issue in the past; notes further that the Ombudsman organised, with the help of EPSO,the European Personnel Selection Office (EPSO), three internal competitions in 2023, in order to retain in-house talent; acknowledges that such actions help to improve the institution’s efficiency;

30. Notes that the internal audit (report(Report 22/03) on the Ombudsman’s ethical framework was finalised in 2023 with six issued recommendations to be implemented by 31 December 2024; notes from the Questionnaire that four of those recommendations have been fully implemented; invites the Ombudsman to report to the discharge authority on the implementation status of the remaining two recommendations;

36. Notes that, following the move of the Ombudsman Brussels’ Office to new facilities provided by the Parliament in 2021, the building was organised as a collaborative workspace with very few individual offices and flexible collaborative meeting facilities; notes with satisfaction that the Ombudsman does not practicepractise hot-desking and that all members of staff have their own desk with ample storage; notes that no changes were made to the offices in 2023 and that a general staff survey conducted in 2023 showed that the majority of staff (56 %) replied positively regarding the physical arrangements in their offices in Brussels;

43. Notes, with regard to the Internal Audit Report 21/03 on the review of the Ombudsman’s Data Protection Framework, that one action remained open in the fourth quarter of 2023 and, with regard to the internalInternal auditAudit reportReport 20/04 on the Ombudsman’s ICT security, that there were seven ongoing actions in 2023; invites the Ombudsman to keep the discharge authority updated as to the progress made in these matters;

45. Notes that the Ombudsman continued to encourage sustainable mobility in 2023; welcomes, in this sense, the fact that the Ombudsman adopted a new mobility policy that provides for the payment of a flat-rate contribution to staff up to grade AST8/AD8AST 8/AD 8 who use sustainable modes of transport to get to work; notes further from the Questionnaire that the initiative whereby the Ombudsman provided bicycles for staff use during working hours was unsuccessful, as bicycles were hardly used during the trial period;

47. Commends the Ombudsman for its good collaboration with OLAF,the ECAEuropean Anti-Fraud Office (OLAF), the Court and EPPOthe European Public Prosecutor’s Office which in 2023 took the form of meetings and exchanges of views on, for example, ways to improve the transparency and integrity of Union institutions or the Union’s oversight framework; recalls that the Ombudsman and OLAF have put in place a system to avoid duplication of investigations; notes from the Questionnaire that the Ombudsman and the EDPSEuropean Data Protection Supervisor (EDPS) cooperate mainly on an ad-hocad hoc and informal basis aiming for a quick and efficient collaboration when needed; encourages the Ombudsman to work closely in cooperation with the other institutions and European Agencies;

48. Calls on the Ombudsman to establish a formalized annual dialogue with the European Parliament’s CONT and LIBE Committees,Committees (Committee on Budgetary Control (CONT) and the Committee on Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs (LIBE)), ensuring systematic follow-up on institutional transparency, governance reforms and fundamental rights protection;

51. Notes that the overall budget for communication and promotional activities (publications, event organisation, digital communicationcommunication, etc.) increased by 17,20 % from EUR 132 400 in 2022 to EUR 155 200 in 2023;

53. Recognises the efforts undertaken by the Ombudsman to provide transparent information and publish data (including statistics on its caseload) in an informative and user friendlyuser-friendly format on the Ombudsman website (although such data are not available in open format); welcomes the publication on the website of a timeline for all inquiries into complaints providing information about past and future milestones in each inquiry;