Answer given by Ms Kyriakides on behalf of the European Commission

7.4.2021

The Commission is accountable towards the other European institutions and the citizens, and is acting in compliance with applicable rules regarding financial management.

The contracts concluded as advance purchase agreements (APAs) with companies include non-disclosure clauses.

The Commission has listened to the calls for more transparency and, in agreement with the companies concerned, it already made the contracts with CureVac and Janssen Pharmaceuticals available to the Members of the European Parliament in a dedicated reading room, and it has published the redacted version of the contracts with CureVac, AstraZeneca and Sanofi.

The Commission negotiates with vaccine suppliers as part of a Joint Negotiation Team. The Joint Negotiation Team includes the Director-General in charge of Health and Food Safety as the Commission’s representative and representatives from seven Member States, appointed by the Steering Board[1]. The Commission has not communicated the names of any of the team members.

The Steering Board reviews the APA contracts before signature. The College in successive Commission decisions has delegated the signature of each APA to the Commissioner or the Director-General in charge of Health and Food Safety.

• [1] Annex to Commission Decision C(2020) 4192 final.