THE LEGITIMISATION OF LOBBYING

Crit­ics argue that the lack of trans­par­ency, exacer­bated by the influ­ence of lob­by­ists, hinders the demo­cratic legit­im­acy of law-making. How­ever, such a pre-judgment is based on exag­ger­ated assump­tions and there­fore, draws false con­clu­sions on the influ­ence and power of lobbyists. While lobbyists maybe not held in the highest regard by the public, nevertheless they often provide invaluable and entirely legitimate services to policymakers. They are an accepted element within society that provide the necessary input and feedback into the political system, thereby helping develop policy outputs which drive political and economic aspects of our daily lives.

• Lobbying helps to amplify the voices of individuals who would otherwise not be heard;
• Lobbying is an  essential part of the democratic process, as longs as it is transparent, and balanced;
• Lobbying actually contributes to democracy in Europe;
• Direct access to those in power is a fundamental of democracy;
• Lobbying enables all issue stakeholders and constituents to offer to power holders expert advice and information on the issues thus further enhancing public debate;
• The possibility of accessing politicians gives citizens the possibility to reach those who represent them, at the same time however it makes it possible for NGO’s and businesses to access politicians;
• Lobbying can support better decisions because knowledge of industries can help to develop better policy.

 Lobbying has in particular the following necessary and positive aspects:

1. The aggregation and communication of interests: Without interests, there would be no politics. The aggregation and communication of interests is thus essential to democracy. The articulation of interests from society offers the political system important information which it would be unlikely to procure itself without external input;
2. The realisation of political participation: Politics should be based on the interests of and indeed involve those it affects. “Government for the people by the people” demands on the one hand that the interests of social players be appreciated; on the other, the people in a democracy must have more opportunities to participate in politics than those offered by periodic elections. Such opportunities include citizens’ initiatives and referenda, and indeed also efforts to actively contribute to politics through lobbying. Political decisions can often have a wide range of complex implications and the advantages and disadvantages of political action must therefore be assessed as carefully and accurately as possible.
3. Lobbying is also a form of political consultancy) and as no political body always has all the necessary knowledge, it allows politics to draw on the external expertise required. Politics needs feedback - even if not explicitly requested- from those affected by political decisions if it is to avoid possible undesirable consequences. Many political projects are, moreover, now highly complicated in terms of both the subject matter and the possible interactions and effects. Projects in areas such as genetic engineering would be almost impossible without external expert contributions. One example of political consultancy are parliamentary hearings in which representatives of society and business are questioned by members of parliament and can express their expert opinions in the development of legislative projects. A similar process is the Commission’s consultation of representatives of civil society on specific issues. This approach in some respects also prevents the majority dictating to the minority, otherwise a source of potential conflict.
4. Lobbying is an important part of parliamentarianism. It provides information and contributes to decisions in the parliamentary legislative process. Society equally needs a way to obtain information from the political sphere.
5. Lobbying can provide intermediary structures for the effective exchange of information and mutual involvement in major decisions. In the best case scenario, this ensures that politics and business work together to make the best possible, sustainable decisions which are ultimately for the public good