In the case of the draft treaty about the greenhouse effect, the UNICE (Union of industrial and employers’ confederation of Europe, the lobby acting for the account of industrial companies) did lobbying (Internet source#2). Its goal was either to shift or to cancel some directives. This it achieved. Moreover, it applied pressure for the passing of self-regulation for companies.
- The qualities needed for a lobby
Whatever the field of intervention and the sector the lobby belongs to, whatever its objectives to achieve, a lobby will be efficient only if it follows a few rules. The golden rules are the following:
∙ To know the EU environment
∙ To inform oneself at all time
∙ To accept making alliances with others lobbies
∙ To know the realities (Nonon & Clamen, 1991).
What makes a good lobby?
The lobby will be effective only if it gets a perfect knowledge of the EU environment. It should know who takes the decisions and how the decisions are taken. It has to precisely follow the development of a proposal and get information about its evolution from day to day (Nonon & Clamen, 1991). “To know who does what” is, according to Jacqueline Nonon and Michel Clamen, “the main added value for lobbies” (Nonon & Clamen, 1991: 165).
What are the good techniques?
“There is no substitute for a good plan” according to James Campbell (Pedler & Van Schendelen, 1994: 310).
“Drawing and executing such a plan demands clear objectives, a long view, a good knowledge of how the institutions work, and close monitoring of the process, from start to finish” (Pedler & Van Schendelen, 1994: 310). It is absolutely essential to have an intimate knowledge of the process and the procedures [for lobbying] (Pedler & Van Schendelen, 1994).
In addition to this advice, Michel Clamen proposes some other qualities that a lobby should possess (Internet source#1):
∙ To be professional: the lobby has to get the calendar of meetings, votes and stands of decisions. He must know the names of deciders and also the political orientations.
∙ To be vigilant: for beginning an action of lobbying, the interest group has to look for information and to set up a network of sources. He should follow its own proposal and know the different opinions on it.
∙ To be early: the lobby has to anticipate the event in order to be the first to give its opinion. It has to have a concrete project, to build an argument and to prepare itself before beginning the action of lobbying.
∙ To act in-group if possible: for being stronger, the lobby should make alliances and present itself as an inter-European lobby. It must accept compromises.
∙ To be everywhere: the lobby has to meet some deciders. It should not neglect any civil servants or European institution. For being heard, the interest group has to present a lot of different arguments and sources of information.
∙ To be determined: the lobby should not have any prejudice, but has to define a clear objective and to accept to give information and new project before receiving others.
∙ To be communicative: it has to adopt the administrative language and to work on the writing and presentation of bills.
- Debate: What makes for effective European lobbying?
For a large panel of authors, lobbies are considered as essential in the European decision-making process. “The Commission needs the lobbies” (Nonon & Clamen, 1991: 15). Furthermore, the Commission encourages lobbying (Nonon & Clamen, 1991). Indeed, listening to lobbies is one of their missions. They maintain very good relations with them and work together all the time. However, the interest groups are not only in Brussels but also in Strasbourg and Luxembourg, where they work in partnership with the European Parliament and the European Economic and Social Council. The lobbies are beside all the European institutions (Clamen, 1995).
In a lot of cases, the European decisions come from lobbies. Indeed, in 1992, out of 400 bills 300 resulted from lobbying actions (Clamen, 1995). It contributes to making the lobbying effective.
Furthermore, pressure groups are powerful because they are made up of a lot of companies, societies or associations, which come from all over the European Union. As Patricia Vigne, lobby in a company, argues, companies need lobbying, too. She mentions that in the next future, a large part of legislation will come from Brussels. The lobbying will be an essential part of the company’s strategy (Internet source#1).
In this way, the lobbies appear as an essential part of the European structure. Indeed, they are numerous and come from all the member states.
However, lobbying is not popular everywhere. Indeed, in Latin countries such as France, lobbying was during a long time and maybe still today considered as bribe, obscure practice on political institutions and anti-democratic procedure (Nonon & Clamen, 1991).
2.2 Principles & aims of the EU lobbying
In order to run an activity of European lobbying, the interest group or the pressure group have to respect some rules of common sense (Lamarque, 1994).
- Principles of lobbying beside the European Commission
For taking decisions, the commissioners need good pieces of information and opinions on a given bill. That is the reason why they encourage and support the lobby system.
Indeed, only 16,000 people work for the European Commission. Consequently, one of their missions is to hear all their partners who may complete their own information. However, this information has to be precise, objective and verifiable. The propositions, which are descended from the information, have to improve a bill in the initial wanted direction. Furthermore, lobbies have to present arguments, which take into account the European structure. If the lobby observes all these rules and presents a strong argument, it will be easier for him to be heard by the European officials (Lamarque, 1994).
Secondly, the Commission gets information and may give some information to its partners. Indeed, information may be reciprocal. If a lobby gave the right information to the commissioners, it could get information from the Commission, too (Lamarque, 1994).
Thirdly, the European Commission acts in transparency. All decisions taken are delivered publicly. It is a godsend, but it also puts several lobbies into competition with each other. Thus, the EU lobbying runs as a market. The Commission accepts the best arguments and rejects the others (Lamarque, 1994). The lobbies know that it is fruitless to speak to a specific commissioner because of its nationality or because of its assumed single authority. Indeed, the commissioners have to find a common position on all the subjects and their points of view do not take the national interests into account but the Community’s interest.
The lobbies act in the entire field for which the Commission has to take decisions or to propose bills (Lamarque, 1994).
- Principles of the parliamentary lobbying
In the European Parliament, the vote rule is weaker than in national parliaments. That favours the lobbying. In this institution, the lobby’s main task is to finalise amendments. In fact, the MPs discuss texts, which were widely prepared by lobbies (Lamarque, 1994).
As a first principle, lobbies have to be vigilant about the European legislation. Before all actions of lobbying, the interest groups have to collect information, to build a detailed argument, to define its own strategy and to classify its priorities. The interventions should be neither too earlier nor too late. “Acting in order not to experience the effects of a new law”, accords to Gilles Lamarque (Lamarque, 1994: 107).
The second principle for the parliamentary lobby is patience. Indeed, lobbying actions suppose assiduity and perseverance. The legislative stage within the European Parliament is much longer than in member States. Texts are always evolving and bills may change overnight (Lamarque, 1994). The lobby should be beside the European MPs from the beginning to the end if it wants its arguments be taking into account and its interest’s safe.
At last, the third necessary skill is realism. All actions of lobbying conflict with opposite interests. So, the lobby has to convince with the validity and the relevance of its argument. Moreover, it should prepare ahead of time the others lobbies objections.
- Reasons and motivations for lobbying in the EU
What are the reasons for lobbying in the EU?
The raison d’être of the lobbying comes from a simple observation expressed in 1988 by the former president of the European Commission, Jacques Delors: “from today to the end of the decade, average 80% of the economic and social legislation for the member States will come from European law” (Nonon & Clamen, 1991: 9). It means that many new European regulations will substitute national ones or will add to them. So, according to Jacqueline Nonon and Michel Clamen, there will not be any company, which will not be concerned by new European regulations (Nonon & Clamen, 1991). Consequently, for all companies, societies and associations, it is in their interest to lobby. Taking part in elaboration of bills and regulations is necessary in order not to experience the effect of new European legislation.
What are the motivations for lobbying in the EU?
About one third of the Commission’s budget is devoted to aid. The aim of this assistance is to solve economic unbalance. This aid is obviously restricted. Consequently, lobbies are in competition in order to persuade the Commission to give the aid for their proposals and not for their competitors. The institution has to determine criteria to evaluate each proposal.
It is precisely in this field that the interest groups lobbies. Here are some examples of funding by the Commission: FEOGA for farmers, Feder for the regions in trouble and CECA for steel (Lamarque, 1994).
Moreover, the EU proposes some aid in order to finance research programs. However, the companies have to respect a few requirements. The research program has to be about high technology and has to be supported by companies, coming from at least two different member States. Each renewal of a program’s aid is an occasion of intense lobbying (Lamarque, 1994).
2.3 The actors of the EU lobbying
The European companies and societies gather in European interest groups or pressure groups where they make an effort to take up a joint position and to propose their views to the commissioners and the MPs.
The lobbying within the EU is composed of several different actors. About 4,000 interest groups act in Brussels, today (Internet source#1).
There are different natures of lobbies: consultant cabinets, jurist cabinets, European branch’s federations, company’s club (as the UNICE) and societies. They represent all the Economy’s sectors: industrials, farmers, fishers, services (transport, energy, culture, etc), trade unions, societies for consumer’s defence (as the BEUC, the European Consumers’ organisation), societies for the environment’s defence, etc. All these lobbyists are in Brussels, where they try to propose their clients’ opinions and influence the institution’s officials in their clients’ interest.
CONCLUSION:
To conclude, we can say that lobbying in Europe is really an essential actor in the decision-making process. The European Commission needs their information to make decisions and the European Parliament works with them in co-operation in order to make bills.
To make a good lobby, the interest group has to get a perfect knowledge of the EU environment and take into account the structuring of Europe in their arguments.
The lobbying in Europe is effective because interest groups gather a large number of companies and societies from all over Europe. The lobbies are really partners of the European institutions in the European structure.
In my opinion, lobbying is a democratic way in the European decision-making process. However, the competition between the pressure groups gives an advantage to the most powerful of them. So, according to me, it would be necessary to include some regulations in the running of the European lobbying.
BIBLIOGRAPHY:
CLAMEN, M. (1995) Le lobbying et ses secrets, Guide des techniques d’influence, Dunod Editeur.
LAMARQUE, G (1994) Le lobbying, Presses Universitaires de France.
MAZEY, S & RICHARDSON, J (1993) Lobbying in the European Community, Oxford University Press.
NONON, J & CLAMEN, M (1991) L’Europe et ses couloirs - Lobbying et lobbyists, Dunod Editeur.
PEDLER, R.H & VAN SCHENDELEN, M.P.C.M (1994) Lobbying the European Union, Dartmouth Publishing Company Ltd.
VAN SCHENDELEN, M.P.C.M (1993) National Public and Private EC Lobbying, Dartmouth Publishing Company Ltd.
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