Decision of the Committee of the Regions of 17 September 1997 concerning public access to documents of the Committee of the Regions

DECISION OF THE COMMITTEE OF THE REGIONS of 17 September 1997 concerning public access to documents of the Committee of the Regions
THE BUREAU OF THE COMMITTEE OF THE REGIONS
,
Having regard to the Treaty on European Union, and in particular Declaration 17 attached to the Final Act thereof,
Whereas provisions should be adopted governing public access to documents of the Committee of the Regions (hereinafter 'the Committee`);
Whereas these measures should be in harmony with the code of conduct agreed and adopted by the Commission and the Council in this area on 6 December 1993, in order to ensure the consistency and continuity of the activities if the institutions in accordance with Article C of the Treaty on European Union;
Whereas these provisions are applicable to any document held by the Committee, whatever its medium, excluding documents written by a person, body or institution outside the Committee;
Whereas the principle of allowing the public wide access to the Committee's documents, as part of greater transparency in the Committee's work, must however be subject to exceptions, particularly as regards protection of the public interest, the individual and privacy;
Whereas this Decision must apply with due regard for provisions governing the protection of classified information,