Screen shot from heavily redacted correspondence between European Commission and British American Tobacco, dated 15 May, 2014. (Document provided by Corporate Europe Observatory)
European Union officials face charges of evasion and cover up after concealing basic information about their negotiations with tobacco companies over a pair of pending “trade” deals, including the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP), in response to a freedom of information request from a corporate watchdog organization.
The Brussels-based group Corporate Europe Observatory (CEO) demanded in March 2015 that the European Commission grant full access to information and documents regarding meetings with representatives of the tobacco industry, citing the EU’s freedom of information law and requirements under the World Health Organization’s Framework Convention on Tobacco Control.