lobbying - Open Government in the EU

Schermafdruk 2015-01-19 11.45.40

Since after the summer of 2014, the Open Government in the EU blog is keeping a regularly updated overview of news reports related to transparency and access to documents in the context of the EU. News reports are collected through quick scans on Google news and the most relevant websites.

While this news scan is in no way exhaustive or fully systematic, it does provide a nice overview of the direction that the transparency debate is taking over a period of months. The aim is therefore to present to our readers, next to the news roll on the right side of the blog, a three-monthly overview of all reports collected, beginning with the final months of 2014. Suggestions for additions or current news are warmly welcomed, via the twitter account @MZHillebrandt.

See also the news report digests for 2020, 2019, 2018, 2017, 2016, 2015 (first quarter, second quarter and second half). –MH

B2371j8CMAAd-pW Within a month in office, the incoming Juncker Commission announces its first tangible steps to increase disclosure relating to its lobbying contacts.

In an interesting move, Commissioner Timmermans (Better Regulation) two weeks ago circulated an internal note, which was soon leaked to the press, explaining the pending change. The note argued that “while contact with stakeholders is a natural and important part of the work of a member of the Commission, all such contacts should be conducted with transparency and members of the Commission should seek to ensure an appropriate balance and representativeness in the stakeholders they meet.”

As a consequence of this line, the 28 members of the Commission will be required to disclose on their websites all contacts with lobbyists as of 1 December. The EUObserver quoted Timmermans saying: “I think we have moved to a situation now where the public says to government ‘show me!’ And we want to show you”.