The Netherlands is not only a country with a high population density, but also the population of organisations and groups for interest representation and advocacy is comparatively large. There are an estimated 2000 interest organisations of all kinds and sizes making their way to the centres of government and parliament in The Hague, where the interest traffic flow takes place. Existing structures and institutional rules on interest representation and decision-making in the Netherlands make it semi-open (but not truly open) to access for public and private stakeholders.

From at least a contemporary perspective, lobbying is absolutely essential to the success of representative government. Without information, perspectives and proposals flowing from those who are governed, elected and appointed officials can often only dimly guess at what policies will advance the interests of those whom they are duty-bound to serve. Protection and facilitation of lobbying is, therefore, a matter of vast significance, achieved in varying ways in different legal systems.

The Swedish public administration is generally regarded as efficient, providing comprehensive services of a high quality to both citizens and enterprises. The low levels of perceived and experienced corruption in Sweden are linked to the long tradition of openness and transparency of Swedish society and institutions and strong respect for the rule of law.

The lobbying community in Lithuania is underdeveloped, corrupt and negatively perceived by society. This results in rising suspicion in the eyes of the public and government officials which impedes the development of an effective lobbying community. Lithuanian interest groups do not use sophisticated lobbying practices and access is largely based on personal connections and corrupt practices.

No one knows how many active lobbyists there are in Latvia. Often lobbying activities are carried out by lawyers, associations, federations, all kinds of unions, public organisations and PR agencies. Although there is no lobbying industry to speak of in Latvia, there are many professionals who have the competency to carry lobbying activities. They know the decision-making process inside out. They are also masters in providing convincing arguments and writing appropriate reports to sway public opinion in their favour, often by using the media to their advantage.

Rules and regulations are often ignored in Poland. Informal networks of friends and family contacts are dominating. Decision making tends to be secretive, no transparency. Official meetings are often less important than what happens before and after. Without effective functioning mechanism of rules and sanctions informal networks often turn into political corruption, bribery, nepotism, clientelism.

In Spain it is a widely held belief that money buys influence in politics. Similarly, the perception that business and corruption go hand in hand is also widespread (EU Anti-Corruption Report, European Commission 2014). According to the 2013 Eurobarometer, 77% of Spaniards believe that corruption is part of the country’s business culture, while 67% believe that the only way to succeed in business is through political connections. Moreover, a staggering 84% of people believe that bribery and connections are the easiest way to obtain public services.

Companies and individuals with the means and the ability to influence public decisions in Portugal can do so without any fear of restrictions or regulation. Lobbying is not regulated, and the issue has not even reached the public debate. Construction and public works, the financial sector and energy are identified as sectors in which dubious lobbying practices occur more frequently.

Generally speaking there is a lack of quantitative or qualitative information available on lobbying actors in France. Nevertheless parliamentary registers as well as the list of members of lobbyists’ associations : Association Française des Cabinets de Lobbying (AFCL), Network BASE (Business Action and European Strategy, Association professionnelle des Responsables des relations avec les Pouvoirs publics (ARPP), Association des Avocats Lobbyistes (AAL) allow the gathering of a few information.

D’une manière générale, on constate un manque d’informations quantitatives ou qualitatives disponibles sur les acteurs du lobbying en France. Néanmoins, les registres parlementaires ainsi que la liste des membres des associations de lobbyistes: Association Française des Cabinets de Lobbying (AFCL), réseau BASE (Business Action et Stratégie Européenne), Association professionnelle des Responsables des relations avec les Pouvoirs publics (ARPP), Association des Avocats Lobbyistes (AAL) permettent de réunir quelques informations.