As Luxembourg’s elite judges at the Court of Justice of the European Union quietly juggle share portfolios and politically-sensitive cases, critics warn their ties (often undisclosed) to Big Pharma, banks and Big Tech raise concerns over possible conflicts of interest and transparency.
The EU is tightening its restrictions on the disclosure of its activities and documents. Of particular concern is the pending legislation on information security, which would introduce security classifications for documents in all policy areas.
Commission officials are also required to restrict contacts with the tobacco industry strictly to what is necessary for regulatory purposes, under a May 2025 decision reinforcing the application of the UN’s global tobacco control treaty (UNFCTC).
Far-right and centre-right factions have long resisted creating such an ethics oversight body, although the vote squeaked through by 296 votes in favour, 292 against.
In this edition of the Secrecy Tracker: how Big Tech’s fingerprints ended up on data centre secrecy laws, the European Court of Justice’s €1.2m website “disaster,” and the irony of a closed-door event celebrating transparency. Plus, the EU Ombudsman is facing an AI-fuelled complaint surge.
