Vergadering Europese ministers van financiën live te volgen via internet (en)

People will be able for the first time live today to peek into EU ministers' meetings as finance ministers hold discussions in a session broadcast live on the internet.

The meeting, starting at 10.00am Brussels time today (11 July), is the first to be held in public after EU leaders last month decided to inject more transparency in the EU council, the member states' decision-making body.

People will be able to follow the meeting live through the council's website, starting with a discussion on the economic and financial work programme of the fresh Finnish EU presidency.

Also open for web-viewing is a discussion on the mandate of the European Investment Bank (EIB).

Finnish finance minister Eero Heinaluoma is set to ask colleagues questions like "do you agree that the highest priority in the EIB's external activities should be supporting the pre-accession and neighbouring [eastern and southern] countries?" according to a meeting document.

But immediately after these two agenda items, the screen will turn black when ministers tackle more sensitive issues like the implementation of the EU's stability and growth pact, the rules underpinning the euro.

And the main decision on the finance ministers' agenda, the formal welcoming of Slovenia as a new eurozone member, will also be taken with the cameras switched off.

"Unfortunately there are not many co-decision items on finance ministers' agenda," said a Finnish diplomat referring to the so-called co-decision procedure to which the new transparency regime is limited.

EU leaders last month decided that as a rule, only meetings under co-decision - where the European Parliament also has a full say - will be opened.

The council can in individual cases also decide to open meetings which are not under the co-decision procedure.