Lobbying in Brussels in the Context of the Lisbon Treaty Sinziana Gille European Affairs Consultant
Why Brussels? Why is it important to be present in Brussels? Brussels is the home of the: European Commission European Parliament (unofficially) The Council Other stakeholders Press
Who? 1 European Commission Proposes legislation 2 European Parliament Represents the people of the EU Increased power since the Lisbon Treaty 3 The Council Takes decisions inthe council metings Commitology 4 National Parliaments
European Commission Interesting Commissioners: Industry Climat Change Environment Transport Interesting DGs: DG Energy DG TREN DG ENVI DG Internal Market DG Consumers DG Enterprise
Body that proposes most legislation Easier to influence legislation before it has been written Important to monitor and reply to calls for consultations Keep EC officials informed of what you are doing and your opinion on specific subjects Commitology Once legislation was passed the Council returns the piece of legislation to the EC to define the last technical details EC must work at this point with other stakeholders
EC Register Gives your voice more weight Principle of Transparency A form to fill in online
European Parliament Committiees Industry, Research and Energy Internal market and Consumer Protection Environment Follow topics and Reports Establish contact with rapporteurs
How to reach them? National connextion MPs that are hard to reach inthe capital are in general easier to reach in Brussels as MEPs Inform about you and your views Heads of Committees Committee members and substitutes Rapporteurs Attend meetings Hearings are public Committee meetings are public only if you are accredited
EP Register Allows you to: Attend Committee meetings Be officially recognised as a stakeholder dealing with the EP How to do it? Only four persons per organisation Through the EP accreditation office Documents: Fill in a form Description of the organisation Letter from the President/Secretary General stating your connection to the organisation Cazier / judicial record Statement form and MEP
The Council Heads of State (European Council) Ministers Permanent Representations Important for commitology
Commitology Hidden power of the decision making process in Brussels More than 2000 specialised committees Active in the implementation phase Regulatory Committees Management Committees Advisory Committees Members: Member States + interest groups
Commitology (22) C09300 –Committee for the adaptation to technical progress of legislation on the improvement of the energy performance of buildings (Committee on Energy Demand Management) Basic Legal Act: Directives 2002/91/EC & 2006/32/EC Committee Procedure: Regulatory No. of meetings: 4 Consultations: 0
Conclusions It is important to be « present » in Brussels Accredited to the institutions In touch with the relevant MEPs EC officials Permanent representation officials Keep stakeholders informed of your actions and opinions via web, newsletter, events, meetings
Thank you! Sinziana GILLE