International Herald Tribune, The Associated Press, 23/6/2008

The European Commission on Monday launched a voluntary register of lobbyists seeking to influence EU legislation — a measure that was immediately slammed by a leading transparency group as inadequate.

Industry representatives who decide to join the register will need to adhere to a binding code of conduct and disclose who they work for and how much clients pay them to put their views to commission officials.

EU Commission vice-president Siim Kallas argued that a voluntary register would be more effective than a mandatory one because participants will have an interest in showing their dealing with legislators is honest and fair — an assumption described by the Alliance for Lobbying Transparency as flawed.

"This voluntary lobby register is more of a token gesture for transparency than an actual step forward," said Erik Wesselius of the alliance, which represents more than 160 groups, trade unions, academics and others concerned with the increasing influence of lobbyists on EU legislation.

The alliance says that rules for financial disclosures are skewed in favor of industry lobbyists because, unlike public interest organizations, they will not be obliged to disclose their total budget, only a "good faith estimate" of their lobbying expenses.

The European Parliament has spoken in favor of a common mandatory — not voluntary — register of lobbyists valid for the European Commission, which drafts EU laws, and the Council of EU Ministers, which represents EU governments' interests in Brussels and approves legislation together with the European Parliament.

A working group including representatives of the three EU institutions will strive to establish a common list, which the parliament wants to be operational by the next European elections in 2009.

EU lawmakers are facing increased pressure from lobbyists seeking their say in drafting EU laws on issues ranging from blacklisting bad chemicals to setting carbon dioxide emission caps — major legislation with impact going beyond the EU's 490 million inhabitants.

Critics say the estimated 15,000 lobbyists and 2,500 interest organizations in Brussels hold too much sway in drafting EU legislature and more transparency is needed.

Brussels has become a growing hub for public affairs consultancies that work for individual companies and industry groups, corporate lobbyists, non-governmental organizations, charities and think-tanks, an environment comparable only with Washington.