The register will be 'practically useless' unless it includes the names of individual lobbyists and 'meaningful' information on how much money they spend, lobbying transparency group ALTER-EU warned yesterday (13 February).

"Leaving out lobbyists' names would put the credibility of the European Transparency Initiative at stake," warned an open letter from the Alliance for Lobbying Transparency and Ethics Regulation (ALTER-EU ) to Commission President José Manuel Barroso. 

ALTER-EU claimed that the most recent version of the draft lobbyists' register omitted two "crucial" pieces of information: the names of individual lobbyists and "meaningful information on how much money is spent on lobbying." 

Moreover, the group warned that "financial disclosure in broad ranges of €50,000" or "flexible ranges of 10% of the total lobbying income of a lobbying firm" could allow firms with large lobbying expenditure to "hide within seemingly wide strategic alliances."

Criticism 'unfair', says Commission 

Describing the letter as "unfair criticism which misses the point," Siim Kallas's spokesperson Valérie Rampi told EurActiv that "the names of individuals are not as important as the name of the organisation they are working for". She added that, given that financial disclosure is required "this information is not necessary to assess the interests represented in the decision-making process of the EU institutions."

What's more, the Commission's consultation showed that a form of "financial disclosure that placed too much of an administrative burden on lobbyists would not be accepted," Rampi said. Asked to elaborate further, she responded: "The Commission is still reflecting on the precise nature of the disclosure," adding it "will obviously define this in a manner which brings real additional transparency."

Nevertheless, ALTER-EU claims that without names of individual lobbyists and 'meaningful' financial disclosure, the register would be "practically useless to investigate 'conflicts of interest' and 'revolving doors' cases" whereby former EU officials move to the corporate sector. 

But Ms. Rampi insisted that 'revolving doors' had "nothing to do with it," and that in any case the Commission's staff rules were "stringent" on this.

Meanwhile, the European Parliament's Constitutional Affairs Committee is currently debating a draft report on the development of a framework for the activities of lobbyists, presented by MEP Alexander Stubb on 24 January. 

Stubb's report calls for any financial disclosure requirement to apply equally to all lobbyists, but questions whether financial figures are the best way of providing information on the scale of lobbying activities, suggesting that a "written description of lobbying activities might be more informative."

Valérie Rampi, spokesperson for Commission Vice-President Siim Kallas, said that the lobbyists' register was primarily about providing transparency for citizens: "The Commission wants to inform the public, not design a tool for campaigning NGOs such as ALTER-EU to pursue individuals." Rejecting the wording of the letter, she added: "There is no need to ring any 'alarm bells' and the Commission will not be 'backtracking' on anything."

But ALTER-EU's members thought differently. Paul de Clerk of Friends of the Earth Europe said: "A lobby register without the names of the lobbyists is useless. It would make the three-year European Transparency Initiative a joke." De Clerk added: "We are very concerned that despite many public announcements the European Commission will fail to deliver on transparency." 

What's more, "a register that will not answer simple questions like 'Who are the lobbyists?' and 'How much money is spent on lobbying by whom?' would only provide a semblance of transparency and not allow public scrutiny of lobbying," said Erik Wesselius  of Corporate Europe Observatory. 

Finally, "journalists need transparency and access to accurate information, which is not guaranteed with the current proposal," said Marc Gruber, director of the European Federation of Journalists. 

Meanwhile on his blog , MEP and Parliament's rapporteur on lobbying Alexander Stubb states: "It is the strength of an argument that counts, not how much money is spent on promoting it." Moreover, he warns that the "misconception that money equals influence must be avoided" as "NGOs with limited resources can be as effective as rich multinational companies". 

The European Centre for Public Affairs (ECPA), European Public Affairs Consultancies' Association (EPACA) and the Society of European Affairs Professionals (SEPA) called for "a single register of interest representations" to be established "for all EU institutions", with "a clear legal base and proper impact assessment". In a joint letter addressed to the Commission, Parliament and Council, they expressed their concern that "varying proposals" would "create confusion and complexity" and "fail to provide the required transparency." 

Although it would be "tough" for his members, European Public Affairs Consultancies Association (EPACA) chairman José Lalloum warned that if the register is to include a financial disclosure requirement then it must be made mandatory, because otherwise a voluntary system would "undoubtedly distort the market". Moreover, signing the register must be made mandatory "from the point of view of capturing everyone" and "ensuring a level-playing field," he said (see EurActiv 16/11/07).