EU meeting closed so it could be open

Members of the European Parliament discussed EU deals with four tobacco multinationals behind closed doors in Brussels on Wednesday, while saying they had nothing to hide, according to a story by Peter Teffer for EUobserver.com.

The meeting was attended by MEPs and representatives of the tobacco companies, NGOs, the EU’s anti-fraud agency Olaf, and the World Health Organization’s Framework Convention on Tobacco Control.

German MEP, Ingeborg Graessle, who organised the meeting, defended its secrecy, but not everyone thought it was needed.

“Honestly, I don’t know,” said one man who attended the event and was asked by an Observer representative why the meeting couldn’t have been held in public. He described the roundtable discussion – about the value of anti-illegal trade agreements drawn up with the four tobacco multinationals – as being “normal”, but would not elaborate.

Since 2004, the EU and its member states have signed deals with Philip Morris International, Japan Tobacco International, British American Tobacco and Imperial Tobacco under which the companies have paid money to the EU Commission and member states to help in the fight against cigarette smuggling and counterfeiting.

The first deal, with Philip Morris International (PMI), is set to expire in July.

Graessle was quoted as saying that it hadn’t been easy to organise the event. She said that by having the meeting behind closed doors, the discussion was more open.

The full story is at: https://euobserver.com/economic/132037