Lobbyists register to shed light on who spends what

Despite protestations from consultancies and criticism from non-governmental organisations (NGOs), it is now almost certain that the transparency initiative launched by Commissioner Siim Kallas in March 2005 will go some way to revealing who is spending how much on lobbying in Brussels.

Even critics of Kallas’s preference for a voluntary register for lobbyists concede that he is standing up for lobbying firms to come clean about their biggest clients and how much they are paying for their services. Jorgo Riss, head of Greenpeace’s EU unit and a leading member of the ALTER-EU campaign for greater transparency of lobbyists, said that overall the Commission was taking a "weak approach" but on financial disclosure "it’s putting its foot down".

"It’s the only thing with any solidity," said Riss. While he said that he would like in Europe a system as clear as that in the US, where firms have to disclose payments above a certain level, he believed that the Commission’s approach would lead to "a bit of financial disclosure". The Commission’s action could also lead the way for other institutions like the European Parliament to follow in requiring more information from those who want to register as accredited lobbyists, said Riss, pointing out that the current Parliament list, while being compulsory, "doesn’t give you any information".

The consultancy industry itself, while critical of the burdens that Kallas’s approach will impose on firms and questioning the value of the information, also expects that there will be some degree of disclosure on lobbying activities. Catherine Stewart, managing director of Cabinet Stewart, a public affairs consultancy, and vice-president of the Society of European Affairs Professionals (SEAP), said that she believed many of the organisation’s members would sign up to the Commission’s lobbyists register because there would be negative publicity for those who choose not to. "You’re guilty until you prove yourself innocent. We don’t have anything to hide," she said.

Stewart agrees with Greenpeace’s Riss that Kallas is sticking firmly to insisting on some degree of financial disclosure, but criticises what she sees as a lack of guidance from the Commission on how to calculate precise spending on lobbying activities, especially in organisations that provide a range of services. "The Commission has said ‘sort it out yourselves’ and we will have to," said Stewart. As the Commission was not providing guidelines on what information to provide, SEAP was working on its own so that companies which registered could feel reassured that they had done so correctly.

Law firms are also warning (see below) that client confidentiality rules will prevent them signing up to the register although they have been holding discussions with the Commission on a more precise definition of lobbying so that a narrow range of their activities is covered by the disclosure rules.

Although firms would make an effort to comply with the disclosure requirements, Stewart questioned the value of the information supplied as the Commission is not proposing to check submissions so that figures from different companies will not be meaningfully comparable.

The new register of lobbyists should be up and running early next year and its first test will be how many of the EU’s lobbyists, estimated to number as many as 15,000, sign up. But it is clear that the register, while making a contribution to greater transparency, will only be the first step in the ongoing battle between lobbyists and transparency campaigners as they argue over what disclosure really reveals about lobbying in the corridors of Brussels and Strasbourg.

Confidentiality fears

While it looks likely that a large proportion of corporate and consultancy firms will sign up to the Commission’s register, lawyers working on EU issues are warning that the new disclosure rules will clash with client confidentiality clauses which forbid them from revealing who they are working for. The Commission is sticking to its position that law firms should be covered by the rules as they are often actively involved in lobbying on legislation and decisions. Julia Bateman of the Joint Brussels office of the UK Law Societies said: "Lawyers are concerned that the proposed definition of lobbying will extend to decision-making in the context of individual court cases and Commission decisions."

The UK Law Societies have been discussing the problems with the Commission and Bateman said that the Commission had asked them to come up with a definition of lobbying that better reflected the day-to-day reality of lawyers’ work in Brussels.

"We are seeking a practical solution that will ensure that lawyers are in a position to make a distinction between ‘pure’ lobbying work in relation to new legislative proposals and advisory and court work for clients," she added.

Drawing a stricter distinction between activities when lawyers lobby in the classical fashion and case-related work may provide a way for law firms to sign up to the register while continuing to respect client confidentiality rules.

Despite protestations from consultancies and criticism from non-governmental organisations (NGOs), it is now almost certain that the transparency initiative launched by Commissioner Siim Kallas in March 2005 will go some way to revealing who is spending how much on lobbying in Brussels.

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