Lobbying regulation — the EU mandatory transparency register

SUMMARY OF:

Interinstitutional Agreement on a mandatory transparency register

WHAT IS THE AIM OF THE AGREEMENT?

The agreement aims to reinforce a common transparency culture and set high standards of transparent and ethical interest representation at the European Union (EU) level by establishing:

a joint framework for cooperation between the European Parliament, the Council and the European Commission (‘the signatory institutions’) regarding their dealings with interest representatives*;
a transparency register (‘the register’), in which interest representatives must register in order to be able to carry out certain interest representation activities (principle of conditionality);
a code of conduct that interest representatives must observe and information requirements that they must comply with in order to be eligible for registration;
a procedure for monitoring the application of the code of conduct, investigating alleged violations of that code and taking action in the event of non-observance.

KEY POINTS

The agreement:

applies to various activities (‘covered activities’) carried out by interest representatives to influence the formulation or implementation of EU policy or legislation, or the decision-making processes of the signatory institutions or other EU institutions, bodies, offices and agencies;
identifies covered activities including:
- organising or participating in meetings, conferences and events, and engaging in any similar contacts with EU institutions,
- contributing to, or participating in, consultations, hearings or similar initiatives,
- organising communication campaigns, platforms, networks and grassroots initiatives,
- preparing or commissioning policy and position papers, amendments, opinion polls, surveys, open letters, other communication or information material, or commissioning and carrying out research;
exempts a range of activities, such as:
- the provision of legal and other professional advice to clients in specific circumstances,
- activities by employers and trade unions acting as participants in social dialogue,
- activities carried out by individuals acting in a strictly personal capacity and not in association with others,
- spontaneous, purely private or social meetings and meetings taking place in the context of an administrative procedure established by the treaties or legal acts of the EU;
does not apply to the activities of the following bodies:
- EU Member State public authorities, including their national and subnational embassies and permanent representations,
- intergovernmental organisations and their agencies and bodies;
does not apply either, subject to some exceptions, to activities of the following bodies:
- EU, national or subnational associations and networks of public authorities,
- public authorities, including diplomatic missions and embassies, of non-EU countries,
- political parties,
- churches and religious associations or communities, and philosophical and non-confessional organisations.

The signatory institutions agree to apply the principle of conditionality, whereby registration in the register is a necessary precondition for interest representatives to be able to carry out certain covered activities. To that end, they adopt conditionality measures by means of individual decisions on the basis of their powers of internal organisation. The signatory institutions may further adopt complementary transparency measures to encourage registration and strengthen the joint framework.

Interest representatives that apply to be entered in the register must:

provide a wide range of information listed in Annex II to the agreement and agree to make that information publicly available, notably:
- their name, contact details, staff numbers, legal representative and interests represented, along with the organisations or entities of which the registrant is a member and the registrant’s members,
- the EU legislative proposals, policies or initiatives they target, membership of Commission expert groups and other EU-supported forums and platforms or of intergroups or other unofficial groupings of Members of the European Parliament (MEPs),
- financial information, including, within specific bands, annual costs of their activities, costs for intermediaries carrying out activities on their behalf, revenue from individual clients (for intermediaries) or total budget and sources of funding (for registrants that do not represent commercial interests);
observe the code of conduct set out in Annex I to the agreement, with its 16 rules and principles, which requires that registrants:
- declare the interests and objectives they promote and specify the clients or members whom they represent,
- not obtain or try to obtain information dishonestly or persuade MEPs, members of the Commission or EU staff to break the rules and standards of behaviour applicable to them,
- not abuse their registration for commercial gain,
- ensure the information they provide for registration purposes is complete, up to date and accurate.

The agreement establishes:

a management board of the register — consisting of the secretaries-general of the signatory institutions — to:
- determine the register’s priorities and the budget and share required for the implementation of those priorities,
- adopt an annual report and oversee the overall implementation of the agreement;
a secretariat of the register — consisting of the heads of unit responsible for transparency issues in the signatory institutions and their staff — to manage the register, which involves:
- establishing guidelines for registrants and providing help-desk support to applicants and registrants,
- deciding upon the eligibility of applicants and monitoring the content of the register,
- carrying out investigations and applying measures in accordance with the procedure in Annex III to the agreement.

The management board and the secretariat of the register are empowered to adopt, on behalf of the signatory institutions, individual decisions concerning applicants and registrants.

The signatory institutions ensure the secretariat of the register has the necessary human, administrative, technical and financial resources.

Other EU institutions, bodies, offices and agencies and Member States (for their permanent representations) may notify the management board of the register of measures they take to make certain activities conditional upon registration in the register or of any complementary transparency measures they take on a voluntary basis.

Conditionality and complementary transparency measures adopted by the signatory institutions and other EU institutions, bodies, offices or agencies or Member States (for their permanent representations) are made public on the website of the register.

The agreement replaces its 2014 predecessor and will be reviewed no later than 2 July 2025.

FROM WHEN DOES THE AGREEMENT ENTER INTO FORCE?

It has been in force since 1 July 2021.

BACKGROUND

The agreement is complemented by a political statement of the European Parliament, the Council and the Commission:
- recognising the importance of the principle of conditionality and emphasising the aim of the three institutions’ coordinated approach, namely to reinforce a common transparency culture, while setting high standards of transparent and ethical interest representation at the EU level;
- listing the conditionality and complementary transparency measures already in place for each of the signatory institutions that are acknowledged to be consistent with the agreement.
In addition, the Council adopted a decision on 6 May 2021 establishing the rules for contact between its general secretariat and interest representatives.
The agreement replaces a 2014 agreement between the European Parliament and the Commission (the Council was an observer) on a transparency register for organisations and self-employed individuals engaged in EU policymaking and policy implementation.
It expands the scope of the previous register and makes the registration of interest representatives in the transparency register a prerequisite for certain interest representation activities, such as meeting certain decision-makers or staff of the signatory institutions or getting access to the institutions’ premises.

For further information, see:

Transparency register (European Commission).

KEY TERMS

Interest representative. Any natural or legal person, formal or informal group, association or network engaged in lobbying (described as ‘covered activities’ in the agreement).

MAIN DOCUMENT

Interinstitutional Agreement of 20 May 2021 between the European Parliament, the Council of the European Union and the European Commission on a mandatory transparency register (OJ L 207, 11.6.2021, pp. 1–17).

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