The European Commission was wrong to refuse to release text messages sent by Ursula von der Leyen to the head of Pfizer during negotiations to secure Covid-19 vaccines, the EU's top court has ruled.
The General Court said the commission had not given a plausible explanation as to why the exchanges between its president and Pfizer's Albert Bourla could not be made public when an investigative journalist requested them in 2021.
That year, Pfizer signed billions of euros in vaccine contracts with the EU, including a deal for 1.8bn extra doses.
The content of the messages between von der Leyen and Mr Bourla remains secret, in a simmering case that has become known in Brussels as Pfizergate.
Anti-corruption group Transparency International has hailed the European Court's ruling as a "landmark victory for transparency in the EU", adding that it should serve as a catalyst to put an end to a "restrictive attitude to freedom of information".
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