Inside Police Custody 2 the Directives work in practice, and to the processes, protocols and resources that are devoted to them. Having regard, in particular, to the requirements of the Directive on access to legal aid, concerning both the availability of legal aid and the quality of legal aid services, relevant government ministries should engage in constructive discussion with bar associations, in order to ensure that suspected and accused persons arrested and/or detained are able to exercise their right of access to a competent lawyer who is willing and able to advise and assist them during their detention. Effective implementation of procedural rights is not a one-off enterprise, but requires an open-minded approach based on information and engagement with the relevant stakeholders. It is to be hoped that this research has contributed to that process. 5.2 Recommendations The recommendations set out below are directed at the European Commission and pan-European institutions and organisations. Recommendations directed at national governments and organisations are set out in the country reports (see Appendices). General • Appropriate action should be taken by the European Commission to ensure that the Directives are faithfully and completely transposed into national laws, regulations and processes in all member states. Initially, this may involve discussions with national governments, especially in the case of relatively minor failures in transposition. In the case of major failures of transposition, or where national governments fail or refuse to engage in meaningful discussion, the European Commission should consider using its powers to refer the matter to the Court of Justice of the European Union. • The European Commission should enter into discussions with the governments of Bulgaria and Romania regarding the point at which, and the circumstances in which, the Directives are regarded as being applicable, in order to ensure that they are applied in the circumstances envisaged by the respective Directives. • If further procedural rights Directives are adopted, consideration should be given to including a requirement that member states report on transposition of the Directive, indicating the action taken, and the consequent national position, in respect of each Article. National governments should, in any event, conduct such an exercise in preparing for transposition, and thus such a requirement should not be overly burdensome. With regard to Directives that have been adopted, but which are still to come into force, the European Commission should discuss with member states how they should comply with the reporting requirement in order to ensure that the Commission has a clear picture regarding transposition. • Given the importance of empirical, observational, research in establishing how the standards set out in the Directives work in practice in member states, the European Commission should enter into discussions with national governments with a view to encouraging and facilitating empirical research in respect of procedural rights. • The European Commission should actively consider whether to propose a European Union standard regarding the electronic recording of interrogations, and of the process by which suspected and accused person who are detained are informed of their procedural rights, in order to enhance transparency and accountability. 60