GUIDELINES FOR DRAFTING A LOBBYING CHARTER

Lobbying defined as ‘any communication, written or oral between a representative or an interest group and a public decision maker in order to influence decision-making’, plays an increasingly important role in the public decision-making process. Other terms are sometimes used, such as advocacy, influence strategies, representation of interests, public or government affairs etc.

In many EU countries, there is no general framework regulating how interest representatives should participate in the public debate. This lack of regulation comforts suspicion and negative perception of lobbying and interest representatives in public opinion. Without such a framework, lobbying can lead to unjustified decisions, undue costs for the community, and loss in public confidence towards public officials and the economic sector: a situation far away from a good working democratic system. Possible abuses (conflicts of interest, revolving doors, influence peddling) can also lead to judicial risks.

 Whenever its use is clear and transparent, when public decision-makers listen to interest representatives, lobbying can contribute to informed public policy decisions. It allows citizens to better understand how decisions are taken on their behalf, based on which arguments and which consultations. Beside, influence strategies are more and more observed, commented by media, non-financial rating agencies or civil society NGOs.

Aware of these realities, companies and organizations nowadays are going into action and integrate their lobbying commitment and practices into their ethic and CSR policy in particular. This dynamic should be supported in all EU member states.

Guidelines for drafting a Lobbying Charter

General Principles

1. Make public one’s lobbying charter
2. Define le role of lobbying for the organization (stakes, articulation with stakeholders, relations with public authorities)
3. Integrate lobbying activities in the CSR strategy (coherence of commitments)
4. Engage to promote best practices in lobbying
5. Reaffirm one’s engagement to fight corruption (ensure compliance with anti-corruption measures adopted within the organization).
6. Specify the policy to be observed regarding gifts, invitations, conferences sent to public decision -makers.

Good practice : Publication of the list of gifts, invitations and conferences addressed to public decision makers.

Organisation of Lobbying

1.  Engage to define the structure and the organization of lobbying (relevant department, implication of top management, breakdown between direct and indirect lobbying)
2.  Engage to disseminate the positions defined at headquarters’ level among concerned entities (subsidiaries) and ensure that they are well transmitted and applied..

Relations with third parties

1. Engage to making public the list of professional organizations, think tanks and other associations to which the organization belongs to or supports financially
2. Engage to make known the diverging positions defended by these organizations. This recommendation implies not to let defend by third party organizations positions which the company does not wish to assume on its own.
3. Affirm the respect of other actors/stakeholders which may have diverging positions (recognition of their legitimacy).

Application of the Charter

1.  Indicate that the charter applies to all employees and third parties undertaking lobbying activities on behalf of the organization
2.  Ensure the professional standards of persons in charge of lobbying, namely via regular training
3.  Define the follow up process and the implementation of comitments.

Commitments/Concrete Rules

1.  Declare oneself to the institutions where lobbying takes place (registers) and respect the code of conduct and rules of these institutions
2. For the persons/organizations mandated, identify oneself and give the name of the organizations for which lobbying activities are carried out (refusal of shadow lobbying)
3. Make public the principal positions communicated to public decision makers in advance and during the debate time, on one’s internet website and in one’s sustainable development or CSR’s report
4. Abstain from any national or European political mandate
5. Prohibit any function as parliamentary assistant, ministerial counsellor, national or international civil servant, detached national expert, expert to courts and related advantages (namely access badges)
6.  Abstain from recruiting former public decision makers before the end of a legal 3 year period and/or from mandating persons holding public office to represent one’s interest
7. Abstain from offering advantages, gifts, invitations, or defrayal of expenses having for sole purpose to influence the decision makers and compromise their impartiality.
8. Abstain from any step aimed at obtaining information or decisions by illegal means
9. Only disseminate information or arguments that are reliable, verifiable and up-to-date/do not disseminate information that is deliberately distorted
10. Ensure the financial transparency of the in-house lobbying budget et amounts paid to public affairs consultancies and professional associations.
11. Make public contributions to political parties (whenever this is allowed by the jurisdictions).