(27 October 2009) EPSU signed the founding statement of the ALTER-EU coalition in 2005, together with over 160 other public interest groups, academics and trade unions from across Europe. For four years now, groups in the ALTER-EU coalition have campaigned for ending corporate privileges and secrecy around lobbying in the EU. The coalition is now a leading voice in the debate in Brussels and in Europe on the European Transparency Initiative and the need for lobby disclosure and ethics (...)

(7 January 2009) A report was published by Corporate Europe Observatory on the Veolia Environment EU lobbying activities in the water sector, "Turning on the taps in Brussels", 17 December 2008. The report can be found at: http://www.corporateeurope.org/docs/turning-on-the-taps.pdf
The report shows according to the CEO Press release that the water giant’s environmental and "responsible lobbying" claims are far from matching the extent and content of its actual activities: Veolia has set up (...)

The UK organisation SpinWatch has detailed how MEPs are linked to business interests while also being responsible for subjects in which these companies have an interest. Most of them turn out to be conservative and liberal politicians who act as lobbyists for business in the EP. Some well known MEPs are mentioned such as Gilles Chichester, Caroline Jackson and Malcolm Harbour. While these are all UK politicians MEPs from germany, Roumania, Finland are also mentioned.
The report details: (...)

(Brussels, 4 June 2008) The Alliance for Lobbying Transparency and Ethics Regu­lation in the EU (ALTER-EU) has today written to Commission President Barroso urging him to intervene and ensure that the Commission’s new register for lobbyists will deliver transparency. The appeal by the transparency coalition comes after the Commission’s announcement that the long-awaited voluntary register will not include meaningful financial information nor names of lobbyists. The weak transparency (...)

The EU is considering establishing a register for corporate lobbyists. As it is turning out, it becomes more a register of NGOs. Public Citizen, a powerful US consumer advocacy group, has written to the European Commission on how its standards fail to compare with more strict ones in the US, and why the European Commission proposals fall short of transparency. They raise the following points:
Meaningful disclosure must be mandatory.
The identities of lobbyists, lobbying firms and (...)

(9 May 2008, Brussels) The European Parliament adpoted a report on a framework for activities of lobbyists in the EU institutions. This has been welcomed by Alter-EU the alliance of European groups and including EPSU that has sought a mandatory register, funders and financial disclosure. However the conservatives and neo-liberals in the EP have managed to exclude law firms that provide lobby consultancy services. They also voted down more openess and transparency for the experts the (...)

(18 April 2008) EPSU is part of the Alter-Eu coalition that advocates more transparency of EU policy making. The importance of transparency was revealed poignantly by a report of the coalition on the European Commission’s Expert Groups. These groups play an influential role in shaping policies at EU level in the crucial early stages. They are involved in drafting and commenting on EU legislation covering awide range of policy issues, including, for example, energy and climate change, and (...)

New briefing shows how corporations use Commission expert groups Corporate Observatory Europe, like EPSU a member of Alter-EU coalition that argues for more transperency of lobbyists, has produced a new briefing on the many committees that exist in the EU and whose expenses are very often paid by the European Commission. Corporations and corporate interests dominate these committees. CEO says:" Unknown to most citizens, a large part of European Union legislation is being drafted and (...)

The Alter-EU coalition of which EPSU signed the founding declaration has criticised the Commission’s proposal for a voluntary lobby register to ensure transparency as a step which does not go far enough to make European policy making more transparent. Financial disclosure is important to find out which organisations fund corporate lobbies. It should apply also to law firms who act on behalf of certain clients. A link should have been made also with Corporate Social Responsibility and (...)

The European Commission is consulting on its initiative to make lobby organisations more transparent. According to EPSU, and the large coalition of unions and NGOs this does not go far enough. More is needed. EPSU has sent a letter to the European Commissioner.
For more read our letter: