The exchange between politicians and stakeholders is an essential cornerstone for all those involved in shaping regulatory projects and a prerequisite for reaching a social compromise. In Germany, the public register of associations has determined the lobbying rules to which lobbyists must adhere since its introduction in 1972. As these are already outdated, Transparency Germany and the VCI are calling for the guidelines to be adapted to modern times.
Transparency and the VCI are campaigning for a comprehensive law on the representation of interests that does justice to all interest representatives, but also to members of the Bundestag and political office-holders. They see the cornerstones for transparent representation of interests in the fulfillment of the following points:
– Creation of a transparency register
– Formulation of a code of conduct
– Introduction of online consultations
– Creation of a position for a lobby officer
Stakeholders such as associations, companies, NGOs, foundations, trade unions, religious associations, law firms, think tanks, consulting firms, public affairs agencies, independent consultants, municipal umbrella organizations and self-governing institutions are to be included in the transparency register, which is freely accessible to the public. Furthermore, a corresponding section should provide information on the fields of activity or areas of interest of the registered interest groups as well as the amount of financial resources used for the representation of interests. In addition, the origin of financial contributions to the organizations of interest representatives that exceed a total of EUR 50,000 per calendar year must be disclosed.
According to Transparency and the VCI, the purpose of the required code of conduct is to set out the principles of transparent representation of interests in a uniform manner for all interest representatives. It is also intended to provide information about rights and obligations when dealing with members of the Bundestag and political office holders. It is also proposed that sanctions be imposed for violations of the Code’s guidelines, such as blocking access to political institutions (ministries and the Bundestag) or barring active participation in public hearings.
In order to avoid secrecy behind closed doors, Transparency and the VCI propose setting up a digital consultation platform. This would continue to enable lead ministries to make a selection of stakeholders who, following a corresponding request by the responsible ministry, publish their submissions on the respective regulatory project within a set deadline – similar to the online consultation procedure at EU level. Furthermore, all interest representatives registered in the transparency register could also publish their position on this online platform. This would enable the responsible ministry to evaluate the submissions of a selected group of experts in a more targeted manner and to have all the positions of the various stakeholders available in one place. In addition, the submissions would be documented and accessible to the public.
Finally, the appointment of a “lobby officer” who is neutral and non-partisan is recommended in order to ensure the responsible participation of interest representatives in the political decision-making process through objective monitoring. The main tasks of the lobby officer should be to monitor and ensure compliance with the implementation of the Representation of Interests Act, to draw up proposals for any sanctions and to present a regular lobby report.
You can find out more about responsible lobbying here:
