The European Commission has published its seventh annual Rule of Law Report, assessing developments across all EU Member States. The report examines the functioning of democratic institutions, transparency, media freedom, and the protection of fundamental rights, while identifying reforms that remain necessary to strengthen the rule of law. Over the years, the report has become an established mechanism for dialogue with Member States and an important driver for national reforms.

Presenting the report, the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, stated: "The rule of law builds trust. Trust among citizens. Trust for businesses. It is what makes Europe the best and safest place to live and invest. This year's Report shows continued positive progress across many Member States. And that is precisely why our Rule of Law Report matters. It has become a reference point, helping to shape national debates and drive reforms across our Union."

Among the recommendations of particular relevance to the Office of the Ombudsman is the call for Malta to establish a National Human Rights Institution in line with the UN Paris Principles. The Commission recommends that Malta proceed with the establishment of an independent National Human Rights Institution, recognising its importance in strengthening the national framework for the promotion and protection of human rights.

The report also recommends the introduction of a formal framework for public participation in the legislative process. While noting the establishment of a Department for Public Consultation, the Commission considers that further legislative reforms are needed to ensure structured and meaningful public participation when laws and policies are developed.

Transparency and access to information also feature prominently in the report. Although Malta has introduced an electronic system to facilitate Freedom of Information requests, the Commission observes that journalists and civil society organisations continue to encounter obstacles in obtaining official documents. It therefore recommends further legislative safeguards to improve access to official information and strengthen the working environment for journalists in line with European standards.

The annual Rule of Law Report forms part of the European Union's mechanism to promote good governance, accountability, transparency and respect for fundamental rights across all Member States.

Lo ocurrido en la ciudad autónoma de Ceuta implica la necesidad de abordar la situación de cientos de personas, muchas de ellas menores, que esperan alguna respuesta a su situación. Es imprescindible hablar con ellos, escucharlos y no limitarse a contemplar su deambular, porque escuchar y decir forman parte del hacer. Es cuestión de aplicar la legalidad, que incluye la ayuda de intérpretes y de abogados para determinar su condición y obrar en consecuencia. 

Ha de reconocerse la solidaridad de los ceutíes y de organizaciones, asociaciones y entidades, y proceder a la distribución de las personas menores con la colaboración de las comunidades autónomas. La vertiente geopolítica y la política exterior han de priorizar la dimensión de esta emergencia humanitaria, y se ha de reconocer lo que supone este carácter fronterizo para España y para Europa. 

En el informe del Defensor del Pueblo “Niñas y niños extranjeros en España solos o acompañados”, registrado en las Cortes Generales, en mayo de 2025, se hacen una serie de propuestas con conclusiones y recomendaciones explícitas al respecto. 

Mostramos nuestra solidaridad asimismo con la ciudad autónoma de Ceuta, a la que no se le puede pedir una acogida de tantas personas menores, lejos de todo cálculo posible. Y celebrar cualquier acción y cualquier política que propicien la convivencia. Y es imprescindible tratar de dar la máxima información sobre los fallecidos, con humanidad para sus familias, y expresar nuestro pésame como país dolorido por la tragedia ocurrida. Son cuestiones en las que se ven concernidos los derechos humanos.

Ombudsman Velislava Delcheva has referred the matter to the Constitutional Court, requesting a ruling that the provisions of §11, points 1–4, and §46 of the Transitional and Final Provisions of the 2026 State Budget of the Republic of Bulgaria Act are unconstitutional.

Ombudsman Velislava Delcheva has referred the matter to the Constitutional Court, requesting a ruling that the provisions of §11, points 1–4, and §46 of the Transitional and Final Provisions of the 2026 State Budget of the Republic of Bulgaria Act are unconstitutional.

According to the request, points 1–4 of §11 amend the mechanism for calculating length of service, replacing the current system, based on days worked, with one based on hours worked. The new wording of Article 355(2) of the Labour Code introduces a strictly proportional calculation of length of service for part-time work, repealing the current rule under which a full day’s length of service is recognised as the time during which at least half of the statutory working hours have been worked. The request states that this represents the most significant change to the length-of-service regime since the adoption of the Labour Code to date.

The wording of §46 is also being challenged, as it abolishes the mechanism for the annual setting of the minimum wage in 2026 without simultaneously proposing an alternative model, a deadline for its adoption, or guarantees for its updating.

According to the Ombudsman, the challenged provisions directly affect the way in which length of service is recognised – a legal fact to which the accrual, exercise or extent of a number of employment and social rights are linked. The request states that the new regulations have a particularly adverse effect on people working part-time – parents of young children, people with permanent disabilities or health impairments, students, pensioners, people caring for family members, as well as citizens for whom part-time employment is the only realistic option for participating in the labour market.

“For these persons, the new regime is not merely a matter of accounting for or administratively recording length of service; it delays the accrual of, and may reduce the amount of, rights directly linked to employment – paid annual leave, additional leave, additional remuneration for length of service and professional experience, and benefits whose amount or entitlement depends on the length of service, as well as the opportunity to hold positions for which the law requires a specific length of service or professional experience,” the request states.

With regard to the minimum wage, the Ombudsman points out that suspending the statutory mechanism for determining it and replacing it with a system dependent on a future and uncertain legislative development has a direct impact on the rights of workers and employees. According to the request, the abolition of the current mechanism without a clear and effective alternative creates a risk of legal and economic uncertainty and deprives a significant number of workers of the necessary predictability and protection.

The request maintains that the challenged provisions are contrary to the principles of the rule of law and the welfare state, to the constitutional protection of labour, to the right to work, and to the right to a minimum wage and paid annual leave. It is further pointed out that the amendments create a risk of indirect discrimination against part-time workers, placing this category of workers in a permanently less favourable position solely because of the organisation of their working hours.

The Ombudsman also draws attention to the manner in which the challenged texts were adopted. The request states that the amendments to the Labour Code were included in the transitional and final provisions of the State Budget Act without the procedures laid down in the Law on Normative Acts being followed, without the necessary prior impact assessment, and without a separate bill or discussion in the National Council for Tripartite Cooperation.

According to the request, the provisions of §46 also create legal uncertainty, as they simultaneously provide for the inapplicability of the current mechanism for setting the minimum wage in 2026 and for maintaining its level until future legislative changes are adopted, without specifying a deadline for this.

In her request, Ombudsman Velislava Delcheva asks the Constitutional Court to initiate constitutional proceedings and to declare the provisions of §11, points 1–4 and §46 of the Transitional and Final Provisions of the 2026 State Budget of the Republic of Bulgaria Act as being contrary to the principles of the rule of law and the welfare state, as well as to provisions of the Constitution guaranteeing the protection of labour, the right to work, the right to a minimum wage and the powers of the National Assembly as the legislative body.

OMBUDSMAN'S RECEPTION-ROOM

• address: 22 George Washington str.,
  1202, Sofia
• phone: (+359 2) 810 6955; fax: (+359 2) 810 6963
• e-mail: priemna@ombudsman.bg

PRESS CENTER OF THE OMBUDSMAN

• phone: (+359 2) 810 6913
• e-mail: press@ombudsman.bg

Follow us

Sono state 569 le pratiche aperte nel 2025 dall’ufficio del Difensore civico della Provincia autonoma di Trento, in aumento rispetto alle 523 dell’anno precedente. Un dato che conferma il ruolo dell’istituzione quale punto di raccordo tra cittadini e pubblica amministrazione, capace di offrire informazione, orientamento e mediazione. È quanto emerge dalla relazione annuale sottoscritta dal Difensore civico Sandro Raimondi, eletto dal Consiglio provinciale nel novembre 2025, dopo aver svolto l'incarico di Procuratore della Repubblica dal 2018 al 2025.

Le richieste sono arrivate soprattutto per posta elettronica, con 280 fascicoli, e attraverso appuntamenti diretti, 266. Nel corso dell’anno sono stati archiviati 472 fascicoli e l’ufficio ha gestito 1.198 comunicazioni tra incontri, telefonate, corrispondenza e interventi rivolti ai cittadini. Nei procedimenti trattati con intervento scritto o verbale, 108 si sono conclusi con esito favorevole, 119 con la trasmissione di informazioni, 26 con esito negativo e 11 per mancata risposta dell’ente. Altri 208 casi sono stati affrontati direttamente in ufficio, soprattutto con funzioni informative e di orientamento.

Le questioni trattate hanno riguardato ambiti molto diversi. Tra i più ricorrenti figurano la sanità, con 50 fascicoli, la previdenza e le assicurazioni sociali con 49, l’urbanistica con 39, i tributi e le tariffe con 37, la giurisdizione civile con 36 e l’edilizia abitativa con 33. Numerose anche le segnalazioni relative a trasparenza, immigrazione, viabilità, opere pubbliche e inquinamento.

La relazione approfondisce alcuni casi emblematici: dalla cancellazione anagrafica avviata senza adeguati presupposti, poi interrotta dopo l’intervento del Difensore civico, alle difficoltà legate alle notifiche tramite il portale SEND; dalle criticità dei “click day” e delle piattaforme obbligatorie nella motorizzazione ai vincoli urbanistici, ai contributi per la prima casa, alle pensioni internazionali e ai rapporti tra cittadini e società partecipate.

Particolare attenzione è riservata al diritto di accesso agli atti. Nel 2025 sono state presentate 20 richieste di riesame, 15 relative all’accesso documentale e cinque all’accesso civico generalizzato. In nove casi il diniego dell’amministrazione è stato giudicato illegittimo, in cinque legittimo; sei procedimenti si sono conclusi per inammissibilità, improcedibilità o cessazione della materia del contendere.

Sul piano istituzionale, al 31 dicembre risultavano convenzionati con l’ufficio 141 dei 166 Comuni trentini. Nel 2025 si sono aggiunti Andalo, Torcegno e Ville di Fiemme e sono state sottoscritte intese di buone pratiche con INPS e ACI. È proseguita inoltre la collaborazione nazionale ed europea tra gli Ombudsman e, nell’ambito dell’Euregio, il progetto “Una salute a misura del cittadino”, dal quale è nato il vademecum “Salute senza confini” sui diritti dei pazienti e l’assistenza sanitaria transfrontaliera.

Raimondi sottolinea che la forza del Difensore civico risiede nell’indipendenza, nella credibilità e nella capacità di incidere attraverso la moral suasion. L’impegno è rafforzare convenzioni, protocolli e attività formative, continuando a operare «al servizio dei cittadini, soprattutto quelli che non possono difendersi da soli».

In allegato: la relazione 2025

Tutte le relazioni si possono trovare nella pagina del Difensore Civico

La organización del encuentro reforzará la proyección internacional de la Diputación del Común y situará a Canarias como sede del principal foro mundial de las instituciones de defensa de los derechos de la ciudadanía.

La respuesta de las defensorías del pueblo ante los movimientos migratorios y el impacto del cambio climático centrarán las prioridades estratégicas del congreso.

La cita reunirá en el Archipiélago a representantes de más de 100 países de todo el mundo y coincidirá con el 50.º aniversario del Instituto Internacional del Ombudsman (IIO).

Santa Cruz de La Palma, 5 de agosto de 2026. La Diputada del Común, Lola Padrón, ha mantenido en Viena la primera reunión de trabajo con la dirección del Instituto Internacional del Ombudsman (IIO), la red global que agrupa a las defensorías del pueblo y organismos homólogos.

En su condición de integrante de la Junta Directiva internacional, Padrón ha iniciado la planificación de la XIV Conferencia Mundial y Asamblea General de 2028, cuya organización asumirá la Diputación del Común tras ser elegida su candidatura como sede del encuentro.

La sesión de trabajo tuvo lugar en la sede central del IIO, en la capital austriaca, y permitió establecer la hoja de ruta del evento y comenzar a definir sus principales ejes temáticos y operativos. En ella participaron el secretario general del IIO, Bernhard Achitz; la directora ejecutiva, Ulrike Grieshofer; y la integrante del Secretariado General, Karin Wagenbauer.

La Diputada del Común estuvo acompañada por el secretario de la institución, Lázaro Brito, quien participó en el análisis de los aspectos económicos y presupuestarios vinculados a la organización del encuentro.

Migraciones y cambio climático: los grandes desafíos globales

Durante las sesiones de trabajo se fijaron las prioridades temáticas sobre las que girará la Conferencia Mundial. La agenda situará en un lugar central la respuesta de las defensorías del pueblo ante los fenómenos migratorios globales y su estrecha vinculación con los efectos del cambio climático, la pérdida de recursos, la inseguridad alimentaria y el deterioro de las condiciones de vida en diversas regiones del planeta.

Lola Padrón defendió durante la reunión que la Conferencia Mundial debe orientarse a la búsqueda de respuestas compartidas ante estos desafíos, favoreciendo el intercambio de experiencias, el aprendizaje mutuo y la definición de estrategias comunes que permitan reforzar la capacidad de actuación de las instituciones participantes en la protección de los derechos de la ciudadanía.

La Conferencia Mundial coincidirá, además, con la conmemoración del 50.º aniversario del Instituto Internacional del Ombudsman, una efeméride que dotará a esta edición de un carácter especialmente simbólico y que servirá para reflexionar sobre la evolución de las instituciones de defensa de los derechos de la ciudadanía y su papel ante los nuevos retos que afrontan las democracias.

Un foro de alcance mundial

La elección de la Diputación del Común como institución anfitriona reconoce el valor estratégico de Canarias como espacio de encuentro entre Europa, África y América para impulsar el diálogo y la cooperación internacional en materia de derechos humanos.

La Conferencia reunirá a representantes de instituciones de defensa de los derechos de la ciudadanía de más de un centenar de países y consolidará a Canarias como punto de encuentro de uno de los principales foros internacionales dedicados a la protección de los derechos fundamentales y la buena administración.

Como miembro de la Junta Directiva del Instituto Internacional del Ombudsman hasta 2028, Lola Padrón participa ya en la planificación y coordinación de este encuentro mundial, reforzando la presencia internacional de la Diputación del Común y su contribución al principal foro global de instituciones dedicadas a la defensa de los derechos de la ciudadanía.