Janssen Catlyn - Interdisciplinary Centre for Law and ICT (ICRI)Leuven Katholieke Universiteit, LLD
Address:Sint-Michielsstraat 6 B3443, 3000 Leuven, Belgium

The author examines legal regulation of the access of individuals to the information available for public sector in the EU countries. The purposes of the article are the comparative analysis of relevant public law acts (relating to international law) and the disclosure of information available for public sector institutions. This information may relate to trade, administration, environment etc. The materials for the research are directives of various EU Institutions: the Council of Europe and EU Parliament.The  Directive  on the  re-use  of public sector  information, 2003  is considered central. Analytical materials written by the lawyers from France, the Netherlands and the UK have also been examined. The article notes that the influence of legal EU institutions on the access to this information is still limited. Regulating access of individuals to it is regarded as an internal matter for each EU state, which is in line with the principles of a sovereign democratic state. The only exception is the information relating to the environment. It is stressed that the 2003 Directive specifies only a minimum set of rules. However, it codifies the transparency of the data and provisions against discrimination and unfair trade. Re-use of information both commercial and non-commercial includes its any application by individuals. Soft copy templates are preferable. At the same time, the exchange of documents between public institutions for public purposes cannot relate to the re-use of public sector information. The author concludes that the potential of public sector information is not implemented entirely. One of the causes is the paying nature of the service rendered by public sector to individuals.