Around 30,000 lobbyists represent in Brussels the interests of countless entities in the continent and, for this reason, they hold a constant and permanent interaction with all European institutions.
At the same time, the European Union has a firm commitment to the principle of transparency, which led it to create, in 2011, the Transparency Register. All lobbies and interest groups must, since then, register to have access to the European institutions and to meet with officials, commissioners and members of the European Parliament, as well as to be part of the expert groups. Since 2017, registration is mandatory.
However, recently, following an interinstitutional agreement, the European Parliament has aimed at going a step further and reinforced its own transparency. Thus, since 27 June 2018, all meetings held by the lobbyists with the staff of the institutions or their participation in any event organised by the institutions must be publicly recorded. In addition, private guests of the MEPs must solemnly declare that their visit is not made with the intention of representing specific interests. Members will also be offered the possibility of declaring, voluntarily, the meetings they have with lobbyists, by publishing them on the Parliament’s website.
With these measures, the Parliament is taking important steps towards perfecting its cooperation with lobbies, such as Alonso & Asociados, to guarantee total transparency both in its own functions as in ours, and also towards citizens and interested entities.
Our firm always advocates for a work that is loyal to the principles of the European Union, including transparency. The book “The Lobby in the European Union, Handbook on the Proper Use of Brussels”, written by the managing partner of the firm, Emiliano Alonso, devotes part of its content precisely to the importance of complying with transparency as an essential element to achieve the objectives of our clients. You can find the latest edition of the book (2016) here and, if you have questions about it, do not hesitate to contact us at info@alonsoassociates.com or by phone +32 (0) 2 230 70 42.