<p><strong>This paper explains the position of the principle of transparency in the EU up to the year 2010. (Including the changes made by the Lisbon treaty.)</strong></p><p>The question to answer is: how could transparency develop into a general principle without being mentioned explicitly in the legislation? It was also out to try to see what the future of transparency might look like.</p><p>In the conclusion it was found that openness and transparency was not something fixed, but an evolving concept. If it was encoded into a single written principle, it could hamper the institutions‟ adaptation to the developing case-law. In the end I concluded that with will and trust, transparency could continue to grow in the future.</p>

This paper explains the position of the principle of transparency in the EU up to the year 2010. (Including the changes made by the Lisbon treaty.) The question to answer is: how could transparency develop into a general principle without being mentioned explicitly in the legislation? It was also out to try to see what the future of transparency might look like. In the conclusion it was found that openness and transparency was not something fixed, but an evolving concept. If it was encoded into a single written principle, it could hamper the institutions‟ adaptation to the developing case-law. In the end I concluded that with will and trust, transparency could continue to grow in the future.