The 2013 edition of 'A Guide to Effective Lobbying in Europe' -The View of Policymakers published by Burson-Marsteller reveals some interesting statistics on how EU member states view lobbying and relevant regulations.

On 5 and 6 June 2013 a special workshop was held in Podgorica, Montenegro on the subject of "Prevention of Corruption: Implementation of Integrity Plan" organized by TAIEX in co-operation with the Montenegrin Ministry of Justice, Directorate of Anti-Corruption Initiative and RACVIAC- Centre for Security Co-operation.

The meeting was well attended and included the following speakers:

On 3 June 2013, Maroš Šefčovič , Vice-President of the European Commission, delivered the following speech at an event organized by Burson-Marsteller for the launch of its "Guide to Effective Lobbying in Brussels".

There is no common regulation concerning electronic cigarettes within the European Union thus far. Member States take different approaches on the issue. The European Commission's proposals submitted to the European Parliament and the Council look at a revision of the Tobacco Producst Directive and classify electronic cigarettes as medicinal products. However, the electronic cigarettes industry claims that their products should be regulated as consumer products because they are neither tobacco nor medicinal products.

While much attention is devoted to lobbyists in terms of registration, disclosures etc., it is equally important to consider minimum standards and rules governing the relations between MPs and lobbyists. Such standards should be established that govern access, expected standards in relation of acceptance of hospitality, gifts and benefits; standards governing participation in events; rules prohibiting paid advocacy. Here below are proposed standards that should be considered:

1. Standards governing Access

Three members of Britain's upper house of parliament (the House of Lords) were suspended from their parties on Sunday after media sting operations caught them apparently offering to use their influence for perdonal gains. The trio were covertly filmed offering to ask parliamentary questions, lobby ministers and host events in the prestigious House of Lords premises in exchange for payment by what they were told were lobbyists acting for companies. Journalists posed as representatives of a fictional company involved in solar energy.

There is a need to explain how the public policy advocacy profession works to the news media, to other external audiences and to your own employees.

Public policy advocacy is an essential aspect of policy-making in any government. It works in two ways, one by giving a voice to a certain cause to influence lawmakers to form policies. Another one is informing the public or the parties of interest regarding the stand of policy makers.

Much corporate public policy advocacy has a poor reputation, particularly among non-profits that battle corporations over environmental, health, and consumer fairness legislation. At the EU level, seventy percent of the public policy advocates represent business interests and only ten percent work for social issues.

Lobbying is not a well-known activity. When individuals are confronted with lobbying they usually have a bad perception of what it is about. The critics can be so harsh that sometimes lobbyists wish they has stayed in the shadow. Lobbying has a very bad reputation and the concept is frequently associated with words such as manipulation, corruption, bribery and so on. The rare occasions the public hears about lobbying is in the media and reports are usually negative.

L'une des priorités de AALEP vise à favoriser des perceptions plus précises et mieux éclairées sur la valeur et le rôle de la représentation d'intérêts au regard des politiques publiques auprès des différentes organisations que nous servons. Le moyen que nous avons retenu pour y parvenir, c'est au travers d'une campagne professionnelle dans ce domaine sous l'intitulé : "Le Business Case pour la Représentation d'Intérêts au regard des politiques publiques™".