New code of conduct aims to combat cowboys

Date: 16/11/1995

UNLIKE Washington, with its lobbyists' register and strict rules on influencing public officials, Brussels lobbyists operate under no regulations.

However, in September 1994, six leading public affairs companies drew up a code of conduct which now has 29 signatories. It states the following:

“In their dealings with the EU institutions, public affairs practitioners shall:

(a) identify themselves by name and by company

(b) declare the interest represented

(c) neither intentionally misrepresent their status nor the nature of their inquiries to officials of the EU institutions nor create any false impression in relation thereto

(d) neither directly nor indirectly misrepresent links with EU institutions

(e) honour confidential information given to them

(f) not disseminate false or misleading information knowingly or recklessly and shall exercise proper care to avoid doing so inadvertently

(g) not sell for profit to third parties copies of documents obtained from EU institutions

(h) not obtain information from EU institutions by dishonest means

(i) avoid any professional conflicts of interest

(j) neither directly nor indirectly offer nor give any financial inducement to any EU official

(k) neither propose nor undertake any action which would constitute any improper influence on them

(l) only employ EU personnel subject to the rules and confidentiality requirements of the EU institutions”.

In the meantime, the European Parliament is likely to agree in December to a code of conduct, drafted by British MEP Glyn Ford, designed to combat the alleged buying of support and harassment by certain groups.

His proposals, which were approved by Parliament's rules committee on 25 September and are due to be voted on by the full Parliament at the December plenary, are:

(a) MEPs should declare any gifts worth more than 1,000 ecu

(b) lobbyists should declare any gifts or payments they make

(c) lobbyists must sign a register giving justifiable reasons for wanting access to Parliament before gaining an entry pass

(d) the pass must be worn visibly at all times and will only provide access to parts of the building and not to MEPs' offices.