Interinstitutional Agreement between the European Parliament, the Council of the European Union and the European Commission on a mandatory transparency register

Author (Corporate)
Series Title
Series Details L 207, Pages 1-17
Publication Date 11/06/2021
Content Type , , ,

Summary:

Interinstitutional Agreement - formally adopted by the European Union on 20 May 2021 - establishing a mandatory transparency register covering the three main European Union (EU) institutions - the European Parliament, the Council of the European Union and the European Commission.

Further information:

A public register for interest representatives has been operated by the European Parliament and the European Commission since 2011, aiming to increase the transparency and accountability of EU decision-making process. The Council of the European Union joined as an observer to the existing scheme in 2014.

The proposed Agreement was put forward by the European Commission on 28 September 2016. It aimed at making the existing register - which is voluntary and applies to the Commission and Parliament - an unavoidable element for any interest representatives seeking to influence policy-making in all three institutions, and on a voluntary basis other EU institutions, bodies, offices and agencies.

The plenary of the European Parliament held a discussion on the proposal on 5 October 2016, and the Parliament's mandate for negotiations was adopted by the Conference of Presidents on 15 June 2017. Representatives from the three institutions met on 6 September to reaffirm on the political importance of this issue. The Council of the European Union adopted its negotiating position on 6 December 2017.

The first round of negotiations was held on 16 April 2018, followed by the a second round on 12 June and a third round on 19 February 2019. The talks were put on hold before the European Parliament elections in May 2019. On 16 June 2020, representatives from the three institutions met again to relaunch talks and reaffirm the relevance of such Interinstitutional Agreement. Other meetings were held on 6 October and 24 November, where it was noted provisional agreement had been reached on several substantial matters. The three institutions eventually reached a full political agreement on 15 December 2020. This was endorsed by the Parliament on 27 April 2021, followed by the Council on 6 May. The Agreement was formally signed on 20 May 2021 and it was published in the Official Journal on 11 June 2021.

Source Link https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/ALL/?uri=uriserv:OJ.L_.2021.207.01.0001.01.ENG
Related Links
Commentary and Analysis
Transparency International: EU Office: Press Release, 28/09/2016: New EU lobbying rules are timid and cosmetic https://transparency.eu/new-eu-lobbying-rules-are-timid-and-cosmetic/
Corporate Europe Observatory: Press Release, 28/09/2016: New EU lobby transparency proposal lacks bite and political determination https://corporateeurope.org/pressreleases/2016/09/new-eu-lobby-transparency-proposal-lacks-bite-and-political-determination
EPC: Discussion Paper, December 2016: The EU Transparency Register: on the right path, but not quite there yet http://aei.pitt.edu/82866/
EurActiv, 01/02/2018: Building trust – the EU Transparency Register at a crossroads https://www.euractiv.com/section/politics/opinion/thurs-building-trust-the-eu-transparency-register-at-a-crossroads/
Corporate Europe Observatory: Press Release, 22/03/2018: Real sanctions vital to stop lobby register abuses https://corporateeurope.org/power-lobbies/2018/03/real-sanctions-vital-stop-lobby-register-abuses
ALTER-EU: Press Release, 05/04/2019: Mandatory EU lobby transparency sunken by EU Institutions https://www.alter-eu.org/press-releases/2019/04/05
EUCRIM: News, 01/06/2021: Parliament Approves Interinstitutional Agreement on Mandatory Transparency Register for Lobbyists https://eucrim.eu/news/parliament-approves-interinstitutional-agreement-on-mandatory-transparency-register-for-lobbyists/

News
EUObserver, 28/09/2016: EU commission presents 'realistic' lobbying rules https://euobserver.com/institutional/135280
EurActiv, 28/09/2016: EU seeks to broaden lobbyist register rules http://www.euractiv.com/section/public-affairs/news/eu-seeks-to-broaden-lobbyist-register-rules/
Politico, 28/09/2016: Commission proposes tougher lobbying rules http://www.politico.eu/article/commission-proposes-tougher-lobbying-rules-transparency/
EurActiv, 22/06/2018: Timmermans: Increasing transparency on lobbying will boost credibility of institutions https://www.euractiv.com/section/politics/news/timmermans-increasing-transparency-on-lobbying-will-boost-credibility-of-institutions/
EUObserver, 05/04/2019: Lobby register transparency talks collapse https://euobserver.com/institutional/144599
EUObserver, 17/12/2020: New EU lobbyist register not mandatory, critics say https://euobserver.com/institutional/150406

Official
EUR-LEX: COM(2016)627: Proposal for a Interinstitutional Agreement on a mandatory Transparency Register http://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/ALL/?uri=COM:2016:627:FIN
European Parliament: Legislative Train Schedule: Inter-institutional agreement on a mandatory Transparency Register for lobbyists http://www.europarl.europa.eu/legislative-train/theme-union-of-democratic-change/file-inter-institutional-agreement-on-a-mandatory-transparency-register-for-lobbyists
European Parliament: Inter-institutional negotiations on the Transparency Register https://www.europarl.europa.eu/tr-negotiations/en/home.html
European Commission: Transparency register https://ec.europa.eu/info/about-european-commission/service-standards-and-principles/transparency/transparency-register_en
European Commission: Press Release, 28/09/2016: Commission proposes mandatory Transparency Register for all EU institutions https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/detail/en/IP_16_3182
European Commission: Questions & Answers, 28/09/2016: Proposal for an Interinstitutional Agreement on a mandatory Transparency Register https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/detail/en/MEMO_16_3181
European Commission: Opening remarks of First Vice-President Timmermans on the Commission proposal for a mandatory Transparency Register covering all EU institutions (28 September 2016) https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/detail/en/SPEECH_16_3223
European Parliament: Press Release, 28/09/2016: Transparency register: an eagerly-awaited strengthening http://www.europarl.europa.eu/news/en/news-room/20160928IPR44301/
European Parliament: Press Release, 06/10/2016: Mandatory registration of lobbyists in the Transparency Register http://www.europarl.europa.eu/news/en/news-room/20160930IPR44580/
European Parliament: Press Release, 06/09/2017: First political meeting ahead of Transparency Register negotiations http://www.europarl.europa.eu/news/en/press-room/20170906IPR83205/
European Commission: Statement, 06/09/2017: First tripartite political meeting ahead of Transparency Register negotiations https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/detail/en/STATEMENT_17_3126
Council of the European Union: Press Release, 06/12/2017: Transparency register: Council agrees mandate for negotiations https://www.consilium.europa.eu/en/press/press-releases/2017/12/06/transparency-register-council-agrees-mandate-for-negotiations/
European Commission: Press Release, 16/04/2018: Negotiations begin on a mandatory Transparency Register for the three EU Institutions https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/detail/en/IP_18_3381
European Parliament: Press Release, 12/06/2018: Second round of negotiations on a mandatory Transparency Register http://www.europarl.europa.eu/news/en/press-room/20180612IPR05636/
European Commission: Statement, 14/02/2019: Transparency: Parliament, Commission and Council held a third round of talks on the proposal for a mandatory Transparency Register https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/detail/en/STATEMENT_19_1152
European Commission: Press Release, 16/06/2020: Mandatory Transparency Register: political meeting to restart negotiations https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/detail/en/ip_20_1106
European Commission: Statement, 06/10/2020: Mandatory Transparency Register: promising progress in the negotiations https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/detail/en/statement_20_1825
European Commission: Press Release, 24/11/2020: Mandatory Transparency Register: provisional agreement on substantial points https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/detail/en/ip_20_2198
German Council Presidency: Press Release, 07/12/2020: Mandatory Transparency Register: Compromise on draft conditionality package https://www.eu2020.de/eu2020-en/news/pressemitteilungen/mandatory-transparency-register/2424352
EPP Group: Newsroom, 07/12/2020: Transparency Register: no representation without registration https://www.eppgroup.eu/newsroom/news/no-representation-without-registration
European Parliament: Press Release, 15/12/2020: Agreement on a Mandatory Transparency Register https://www.europarl.europa.eu/news/en/press-room/20201211IPR93661/
European Commission: Press Release, 15/12/2020: Agreement on a Mandatory Transparency Register https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/detail/en/IP_20_2425
European Commission: Questions & Answers: Agreement on a Mandatory Transparency Register (15 December 2020) https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/detail/en/QANDA_20_2427
European Parliament: Press Release, 27/04/2021: Parliament approves new rules for a common mandatory Transparency Register https://www.europarl.europa.eu/news/en/press-room/20210422IPR02617/
Council of the European Union: Press Release, 06/05/2021: Transparency register: Council adopts new rules making registration of interest representatives mandatory https://www.consilium.europa.eu/en/press/press-releases/2021/05/06/transparency-register-council-adopts-new-rules-making-registration-of-interest-representatives-mandatory/
EUR-LEX: Official Journal of the European Union: L 207: Political statement of the European Parliament, the Council of the European Union and the European Commission on the occasion of the adoption of the Interinstitutional Agreement on a Mandatory Transparency Register https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=uriserv:OJ.L_.2021.207.01.0018.01.ENG

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Record URL https://www.europeansources.info/record/?p=500268