General EU issues | Greenpeace EU Unit Lobbying of MEPs has increased since the the European Parliament gained new legislative powers with the adoption of the EU Lisbon Treaty Greenpeace is an active member of the Alliance for Lobbying Transparency and Ethics Regulation (ALTER-EU), a coalition of over 160 civil society groups, trade unions, academics and public affairs firms campaigning for a minimum of: EU lobbying disclosure legislation, which must include: -A mandatory system of electronic registration and reporting for all lobbyists with a significant annual lobbying budget. The reports must be made available in a fully accessible database; -Enforceable ethics rules for lobbyists, for instance prohibiting employment of officials or their relatives for lobbying purposes. An improved code of conduct for European Commission officials, including: -Recording of formal and informal meetings between Commission officials and lobbyists and logging of correspondence, to be made available in a fully searchable online database;
Le commissaire européen au Commerce poursuivi pour fraude fiscale présumée | euronews, Europe Karel De Gucht ne démissionnera de son poste de commissaire européen. L’exécutif bruxellois l’a exclu ce vendredi. Le membre belge de la Commission va pourtant comparaître devant la justice de son pays à la fin du mois dans une affaire de fraude fiscale présumée. Il aurait omis de déclarer une plus-value réalisée en vendant des actions. “ Gardons séparé ce qui doit être séparé. Le Maltais John Dalli avait dû quitter son poste de commissaire à la Santé sur des soupçons de demande de pot-de-vin pour influencer une législation européenne sur le tabac. Des mesures incitant les lobbyistes à signer le registre de transparence de l’UE Les mesures encourageant les lobbyistes travaillant avec l’UE à signer le "registre de transparence" ont été approuvées par la commission des affaires constitutionnelles ce mardi. Les députés ont réitéré leur demande de rendre le registre obligatoire. Parallèlement, ils ont adopté les nouvelles dispositions visant à inciter les groupes d’intérêts à rendre leurs relations avec l'UE plus transparentes. Roberto Gualtieri (S&D, IT), député en charge de la mise à jour du registre, a expliqué: "L’approbation de ce rapport, qui soutient un accord conclu entre le Parlement et la Commission européenne, est un pas en avant important vers une meilleure transparence des institutions de l’UE. Nous plaidons une fois de plus en faveur d'un registre obligatoire pour toutes les organisations engagées dans les politiques de l’UE et nous appelons la Commission à prendre toutes les mesures nécessaires en ce sens. La décision a été approuvée à l’unanimité. Des mesures d’incitation Des définitions plus claires
European political parties to get legal status, must abide by EU values BRUSSELS - European Political parties will be put on a firm legal footing, have to declare sizeable donations, and abide by EU values under new rules agreed Tuesday (18 March). The rules, which have to be endorsed by the plenary and are only expected to come into force in 2017, are meant to increase transparency of the pan-European parties by subjecting to them to stricter spending and accountability rules. All donations above €3,000 will have to be made known to the public while there will be a ceiling of €18,000 per donor per year. Marietta Giannakou, the Greek centre-right MEP who piloted the legislation through parliament, said the discussions on the deal, lasting over 18 months, had been "difficult." The sticking points were the rules around penalising parties for poor accounting and de-registering them if they breach EU values. The rules include a new "authority" headed by someone who has never held political office or been a member of a political party.
New measures to encourage lobbyists to sign the EU Transparency Register Measures to encourage lobbyists working with the EU to sign the EU’s public “Transparency Register” were backed by the Constitutional Affairs Committee on Tuesday. MEPs reiterated their demand that the register be made compulsory and meanwhile approved new provisions to push interest groups to make their relations with the EU more transparent. Roberto Gualtieri (S&D, IT), MEP in charge for the update of the Register, said: "The approval of this report, which endorses an agreement reached by Parliament and the European Commission, is an important step towards greater transparency of the EU institutions. We insist on our request for a mandatory register for all organizations engaged in EU policy-making and call on the Commission to take all necessary steps for this purpose. Parliament pledges to adapt its internal provisions in order to guarantee incentives for the registered organizations. ” The decision was approved unanimously. Incentive measures Clearer definitions Background Next steps
Civil society calls upon Commissioner Šefčovič for higher levels of transparency, fairness and accountability among the Commission's expert groups | ALTER-EU Dear Commissioner Šefčovič, We are writing to you as a broad group of civil society organisations closely involved and following the process of reforming the European Commission expert groups. Civil society has been a key actor in pushing for higher levels of transparency, fairness and accountability among the Commission's expert groups, as the Commission has publicly stated at ALTER-EU events and to MEPs. However, since the launching of the informal dialogue between the Commission and the Parliament in September, many civil society groups have felt excluded from the process undertaken by the Commission to reform its expert groups . This has in part been due to a lack of direct contact with Commission officials, as was the practice in the past, but also due to a perceived lack of transparency around progress, with relevant documents, such as the State of Play, not being made publicly available. · Many groups remain very imbalanced despite modifications to their composition, and the Group.
Les liaisons dangereuses entre Bruxelles et les cigarettiers inquiètent Les relations entre l'exécutif européen et les lobbys du tabac restent fortement critiquées, deux ans après le « Dalligate ». Certains eurodéputés et ONG dénoncent le manque de transparence de la Commission européenne sur le sujet. Près de deux ans après le scandale du « Dalligate », une affaire de corruption impliquant l'ancien commissaire européen à la Santé et le lobby du tabac, les relations entre la Commission européenne et les cigarettiers restent problématique, selon des organisations de la société civile et des eurodéputés. De son côté, la Commission européenne soutient qu'elle est en complète conformité avec la convention-cadre de l'Organisation mondiale de la santé (OMS), qui oblige les États membres à mettre en ligne toutes les réunions tenues avec l'industrie du tabac, ainsi que leurs procès-verbaux. Un manque de « transparence proactive » L'eurodéputé vert, José Bové, partage les mêmes inquiétudes. Une question d'interprétation ? Le Parlement critiqué