European Ombudsman Emily O’Reilly has launched a wide-ranging inquiry into how the Commission handles so-called ‘revolving doors’ cases among its staff. The inquiry is part of a reinforced monitoring of how the EU administration implements the ethics obligations on EU staff who move to the private sector.

The Ombudsman will inspect 100 personnel files related to decisions by the Commission on requests by senior and mid-level managers for approval of either new employment or of unpaid leave in order to undertake another activity.

The files cover a total of 14 Directorate-Generals in addition to all commissioner cabinets, the Commission’s Legal Service, Secretariat-General, internal think tank and the Regulatory Scrutiny Board. The wide scope aims to ensure a broad understanding of how such decisions are taken across a range of Commission departments.

“Robust management of the ‘rev