European Ombudswoman Teresa Anjinho has said national and regional ombudsmen across the EU are launching joint inquiries into issues including unsafe food alerts and the implementation of EU climate law, as she urged closer cross-border cooperation at a conference in Rome.
Anjinho told the Conference of Ombudsmen on Civic Protection, Rights, and Democratic Innovation that ombudsmen act as independent intermediaries between the public and institutions, offering an alternative route to resolving complaints without going to court, according to her speech released on Thursday.
She described the European Network of Ombudsmen — a cooperation forum linking the European Ombudsman with national and regional offices — as a way to share working methods, raise cross-border questions and run “parallel” investigations on shared issues.
Joint inquiries on food safety and climate law
A new parallel inquiry has been launched into the EU’s alert system for unsafe food and animal feed, looking at how effectively it protects people across the bloc, the European Ombudsman said.
Anjinho also stressed that the network is set to open another parallel inquiry, proposed by the Slovenian Ombudsman, into how EU climate law is being implemented by public administrations.
Discussions are also taking place among network members on the EU Migration and Asylum Pact, with Anjinho saying she is considering joint work on how EU and national authorities involve ombudsmen in border screening procedures and how compliance with fundamental rights is assessed.
Anjinho said she will present a 30-year anniversary report on the European Network of Ombudsmen to the President of the European Parliament later this year.
