Six months before the European elections, which will take place in June, the “true or false” sifts through all the falsehoods and myths surrounding the European Union. The True or False Cell looked in particular at the activity of lobbies in Brussels.
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Do lobbies have all the power in Brussels? This is a recurring accusation: the lobbies are so numerous and so powerful that European MPs no longer have any control over the making of laws. We are told that they would be completely subject to interest groups.
Many lobbies in Brussels
It is true that there are indeed many lobbies in Brussels. There are around 12,500 organizations, which represents around 50,000 lobbyists currently working in Brussels. It is therefore no exaggeration to say that Brussels is a nest of lobbyists. Their mission is clearly to influence public decision-making and defend the interests they represent. They can work on behalf of a wide variety of entities: companies, religious organizations, NGOs or even unions. But this is indeed legal. The European Commission even considers that they are necessary to obtain expertise on certain subjects.
Lobby control systems
However, the activity of lobbies is regulated. They do not, in theory at least, have the right to do completely what they want in Brussels. Lobbyists are notably supposed to register in a European transparency register. Registration on this register is even compulsory to obtain a badge and have the right to enter the premises of the European Parliament. The Code of Conduct for Members of the European Parliament also requires MEPs to publish all planned meetings with interest representatives covered by this register. As far as the European Commission is concerned, commissioners and senior officials only have the right to meet lobbies registered in the transparency register and, above all, they must make public all their scheduled meetings with representatives of lobby groups. interests.
Rules that are not always enough
If lobbying is a legal activity, it must be distinguished from an act of corruption. Paying money to influence a political decision is not an act of lobbying but an act of corruption punishable by the code of conduct for Members of the European Parliament. In December 2022 in particular, the scandal of “Qatargate” erupted when Qatar and Morocco were suspected of having paid cash in exchange for decisions in the European Parliament favorable to their countries. The investigation into this scandal is still ongoing.
