Overview
Lobbying Costs
249,600€
Financial year: Jan 2014 - Jan 2015
Lobbyists (Full time equivalent)
6.75 Fte (15)
Lobbyists with EP accreditation
8
High-level Commission meetings
19
Lobbying Costs over the years
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Info
Corporate Europe Observatory (CEO)
EU Transparency Register
5353162366-85 First registered on 05 Sep 2008
Goals / Remit
CEO is a Brussels-based research and campaign group targeting the threats to democracy, equity, social justice and the environment posed by the economic and political power of corporations and their lobby groups.
Corporate Europe Observatory is strongly committed to transparency about EU lobbying. CEO believes that the Transparency Register fails basic transparency standards and does not yet live up to its name. We support ALTER-EU's demand for a legally-binding register, stronger safeguards against inaccurate reporting, and the publication of the names of all individual interest representatives.
When registering, we have chosen to provide additional information that we consider necessary and relevant for lobbying transparency. A credible EU lobbying transparency register should include names of individual lobbyists and the issues that they try to influence, provide precise and comparable financial information on lobbying, and have effective monitoring and sanctions to ensure the accuracy and completeness of the information disclosed. In an effort to arrive at a more objective way of calculating lobbying expenditures, we follow guidelines that result from consultations with public interest organisations, professionals working on lobby transparency as well as experts of US lobby disclosure legislation. Our registration is therefore providing a more comprehensive calculation of our expenses for activities that aim to influence the policy formulation and decision-making processes of the European institutions, and a list of those who, on behalf of Corporate Europe Observatory, carry out such activities. Our registration is based on the guidelines for transparent registration developed by the Civil Society Contact Group and ALTER-EU. Find the guidelines here: http://www.alter-eu.org/documents/2012/04/transparency-register-guidelines
In 2014-15 Corporate Europe Observatory ran campaigns and conducted research on the following issues (among others):
- corporate political influence at EU level
- EU lobby transparency and ethics rules
- conflicts of interest rules of EU institutions
- agri-business, chemicals and biodiversity
- climate and energy
- international trade and investment rules
- regulation of financial markets
- EU economic governanceMain EU files targeted
Issues covered in 2014-15:
- 2013-14 EU Transparency Register Review
- Ongoing implementation of 2011 Code of Conduct for EU Commissioners
- Ongoing implementation of 2014 European staff regulations
- Ongoing implementation of 2012 Code of Conduct for MEPs
- Founding regulations, rules on conflicts of interest, transparency issues at the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) and the European Medicines Agency (EMA)
- Composition of European Commission expert groups
- European Parliament's working group: Revisiting the Rules of Procedure
- European Parliament's report: Transparency, Accountability and Integrity in the EU Institutions
- Commission Work Programme for 2015, including the Establishment of a mandatory Transparency Register for interest representatives, REFIT and the inter-institutional agreement on better law-making
- Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS), including in the Energy Union
- EU position at climate negotiations at the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC)
- EU trade policy, with a focus on the current negotiations on the EU-US Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP), the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement between the EU and Canada (CETA), and EU foreign investment policy
- Food, GMO and pesticide policies and regulations
- Trades secrets directive
In addition we work to expose corporate lobbying on the following additional dossiers:
- Capital markets union; Banking regulation; Tobacco Products Directive revision; Copyright directive; Clinical Trials Directive and Innovative Medicines Initiative (IMI 2); Energy Union; Vehicle emissions review; Unconventional Fossil Fuels (BREFs); Tax Transparency Package; Endocrine disruptors regulationAddress
Head Office
Rue d'Edimbourg, 26
Brussels 1050
BELGIUM -
People
Total lobbyists declared
15
Employment time Lobbyists 75% 2 50% 8 25% 5 Lobbyists (Full time equivalent)
6.75
Lobbyists with EP accreditation
All Lobbyists with EP accreditation over time
8 accreditations were / are live (in bold) for the selected state of 05 Oct 2015
Name Start date End Date Marcella VIA 30 Nov 2023 07 Nov 2024 Ms Marcella VIA 30 Nov 2023 15 Apr 2024 Ms Martha MYERS-LOWE 06 May 2023 31 Jan 2024 Ms Margarida da Silva 05 Nov 2019 31 Oct 2020 Mr Richard Olivier Hoedeman 11 Sep 2019 01 Oct 2020 Ms Luisa IZUZQUIZA 15 Jun 2019 01 Jul 2020 Ms Nina Holland 13 Apr 2019 01 May 2020 Mr Martin Pigeon 05 Apr 2019 04 Apr 2020 Ms Margarida da Silva 26 Oct 2018 26 Oct 2019 Ms Nina Holland 03 Feb 2018 02 Feb 2019 Ms Lora Verheecke 30 Jan 2018 31 Oct 2018 Mr Richard Olivier Hoedeman 07 Dec 2017 06 Dec 2018 Ms Margarida da Silva 01 Nov 2017 26 Oct 2018 Mr Martin Pigeon 05 Oct 2017 27 Sep 2018 Ms Nina Holland 26 Oct 2016 25 Oct 2017 Mr Pascoe Sabido 19 Oct 2016 18 Oct 2017 Mr Martin Pigeon 13 Oct 2016 05 Oct 2017 Ms Margarida da Silva 30 Sep 2016 29 Sep 2017 Mr Richard Olivier Hoedeman 07 Jun 2016 04 Jun 2017 Ms Katharina KLEIN 22 Sep 2015 18 Jan 2016 Mr Erik Wesselius 12 Sep 2015 10 Sep 2016 Mr Pascoe Sabido 05 Sep 2015 03 Sep 2016 Ms Nina Holland 03 Sep 2015 01 Sep 2016 Mr Martin Pigeon 03 Jul 2015 30 Jun 2016 Mr Richard Olivier Hoedeman 04 Jun 2015 01 Jun 2016 Ms Nina Holland 01 May 2014 05 Jun 2015 Ms Lora Verheecke 08 Jan 2015 06 Jan 2016 Mr David Lundy 09 Jan 2015 07 Jan 2016 Mrs Lora Verheecke 08 Jan 2015 27 Jan 2015 Mr Erik Wesselius 05 Jul 2014 03 Jul 2015 Mr Richard Olivier Hoedeman 01 May 2014 04 Jun 2015 Mr Martin Pigeon 01 May 2014 05 Jun 2015 Mrs Nina Holland 01 May 2014 27 Jan 2015 Mr Pascoe Sabido 01 May 2014 05 Jun 2015 Mrs Leontine Hogervorst 05 Feb 2014 18 May 2014 Mrs Victoria Lucy Cann 02 Oct 2013 22 Feb 2014 Mr Ivan Mammana 21 Jun 2013 22 Feb 2014 Mr Richard Olivier Hoedeman 18 Apr 2013 17 Apr 2014 Mrs Maria Belen Balanya Vidal 18 Apr 2013 02 Mar 2014 Mr David Sanchez Carpio 13 Apr 2013 03 Oct 2013 Mr Erik Wesselius 13 Apr 2013 02 Apr 2014 Mrs Ester Arauzo Azofra 13 Apr 2013 02 Mar 2014 Mr Kenneth Haar 13 Apr 2013 12 Feb 2014 Mr Martin Pigeon 13 Apr 2013 12 Apr 2014 Mrs Nina Holland 13 Apr 2013 12 Apr 2014 Mr Pascoe Sabido 13 Apr 2013 12 Apr 2014 Mrs Pia Eberhardt 13 Apr 2013 15 Feb 2014 Mrs Rachel Tansey 13 Apr 2013 03 Oct 2013 Mr Martin Konecny 13 Apr 2013 05 Oct 2013 Complementary Information
Below we list staff members and interns, alongside the main EU policy issues they work on (October 2015)
- Olivier Hoedeman (70%): lobby transparency, privileged access, conflicts of interest regulation, TTIP
- Nina Holland (50%): food and agriculture policy
- David Lundy (10%): CEO media officer. (From October 2009 to December 2014, David worked as a media officer for the GUE-NGL group in the European Parliament.)
- Martin Pigeon (50%): food and agriculture policy, “science vs. lobbying", Commission's research + scientific advice policies
- Pascoe Sabido (40%): privileged access, lobbying transparency, conflicts of interest, climate and energy
- Lora Verheecke (40%): TTIP, lobbying transparency
- Erik Wesselius (50%): lobby transparency, better regulation
- Belén Balanyá (10%): climate and energy policy
- Vicky Cann (70%): lobby transparency, conflicts of interest, revolving doors
- Pia Eberhardt (50%): TTIP, CETA, privileged access, EU foreign investment policy
- Kenneth Haar (15%): EU economic governance, financial sector regulation, trade (TTIP)
- Rachel Tansey (40%) on a consultancy basis: privileged access, lobbying transparency, conflicts of interest, climate and energy, TTIP, pharmaceuticals and health, better regulation
In addition, in 2015, CEO hosts the following interns:
- Margarida da Silva (50%) privileged access, conflicts of interest
- Katharina Klein (30%) food and agriculture policy
- Ronja Heise (30%) climate and energy policy
Please note, not all these staff work full-time for CEO; many are part-time.Person in charge of EU relations
Mr Olivier Hoedeman (Research and campaigns coordinator)
Person with legal responsibility
Ms Ann Doherty (Board Chair)
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Categories
Category
III - Non-governmental organisations
Subcategory
Non-governmental organisations, platforms and networks and similar
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Networking
Affiliation
- Alliance for Lobbying Transparency and Ethics Regulation (ALTER-EU) www.alter-eu.org
- Alternative Trade Mandate (ATM) www.alternativetrademandate.org/
- Seattle to Brussels Network (S2B) www.s2bnetwork.org
- Reclaiming Public Water Network www.waterjustice.org
- European Coalition for Corporate Justice (ECCJ) www.corporatejustice.org
- Climate Justice Network (CJN) www.climatejusticenetwork.org/
- Better Regulation Watchdog (BRW): www.betterregwatch.eu/
- AlterSummit: http://www.altersummit.eu/Member organisations
None declared
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Financial Data
Closed financial year
Jan 2014 - Jan 2015
Lobbying costs for closed financial year
249,600€
Other financial info
Additional information on Corporate Europe Observatory’s expenses and income related to interest representation activities (please note our critique on this register under "organisation's goals/remit" above):
Expenses
Corporate Europe Observatory’s expenses for interest representation activities in the year 2014 amounted to 249,600 €. These expenses were calculated according to the guidelines for registration drawn up by the EU Civil Society Contact Group and the Alliance for Lobbying Transparency and Ethics Regulation in the EU (ALTER-EU).
See: http://www.alter-eu.org/sites/default/files/documents/2012_ALTER-EU_CSCG_guidelines_Transparency_Register.pdf
In 2014 our grants income was received from these funders:
Adessium Foundation - €158,737
Fondation CL Mayer pour le Progress de l'homme - €21,500
Isvara Foundation - €200,000
JMG Foundation - €75,000
Joseph Rowntree Charitable Trust €25,000
Marisla Foundation - €31,926
Open Society Foundation - €65,152
Polden Puckham Foundation - €24,400
Sigrid Rausing Trust - €10,000
Total grants income: €611,715
A full profits and losses account 2005-2014 is available here: http://corporateeurope.org/sites/default/files/ceo_profits_and_losses_2005-2014.pdf -
EU Structures
Groups (European Commission)
None
ACC
None
Groups (European Parliament)
Intergroup on integrity, transparency, corruption and organised crime (ITCO). Corporate Europe Observatory is not a member of this intergroup, but attends some meetings.
Communication activities
None
Other activities
See the CEO Annual Review 2013 for a more comprehensive overview of our activities: http://corporateeurope.org/sites/default/files/ceo_annual_review_2013.pdf
View our annual accounts 2005-2014: http://corporateeurope.org/sites/default/files/ceo_profits_and_losses_2005-2014.pdf- Meetings
Meetings
19 meetings found. Download meetings
The list below only covers meetings held since November 2014 with commissioners, their cabinet members or directors-general at the European Commission; other lobby meetings with lower-level staff may have taken place, but the European Commission doesn't proactively publish information about these meetings. For more information about which commissioner is responsible for which portfolio, check out this link: https://commissioners.ec.europa.eu/index_en All information below comes from European Commission web pages.
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Date 28 Feb 2023 Location Brussels Subject Cost of living crisis Cabinet Cabinet of Commissioner Kadri Simson Portfolio Energy Attending - Thor-Sten Vertmann (Cabinet member)
Other Lobbyists -
Date 03 May 2022 Location Brussels Subject New Genomic Techinques Cabinet Cabinet of Commissioner Stella Kyriakides Portfolio Health Attending - Roberto Reig Rodrigo (Cabinet member)
Other Lobbyists -
Date 03 May 2022 Location Brussels Subject New genomic techniques Cabinet Cabinet of Executive Vice-President Frans Timmermans Portfolio European Green Deal Attending - Lukas Visek (Cabinet member)
Other Lobbyists -
Date 01 Mar 2022 Location Videoconference Subject Transparency register Cabinet Cabinet of Vice-President Věra Jourová Portfolio Values and Transparency Attending - Alvaro De Elera (Cabinet member)
Other Lobbyists -
Date 09 Nov 2021 Location Videoconference Subject Governance, hydrogen Cabinet Cabinet of Commissioner Thierry Breton Portfolio Internal Market Attending - Thierry Breton (Commissioner)
- Joan Canton (Cabinet member)
Other Lobbyists -
Date 11 May 2021 Location Brussels Subject VTC Meeting - New Genomic Techniques and Gene drives Cabinet Cabinet of Commissioner Stella Kyriakides Portfolio Health Attending - Roberto Reig Rodrigo (Cabinet member)
Other Lobbyists -
Date 21 Jan 2021 Location Videoconference Subject Transparency in tobacco lobbying Cabinet Cabinet of Vice-President Věra Jourová Portfolio Values and Transparency Attending - Renate Nikolay (Cabinet member)
Other Lobbyists -
Date 15 Jan 2021 Location Brussels Subject VC Meeting - Farm to Fork Strategy and GMOs Cabinet Cabinet of Commissioner Stella Kyriakides Portfolio Health Attending - Stella Kyriakides (Commissioner)
Other Lobbyists -
Date 26 Nov 2020 Location Virtual meeting Subject to discuss the PPP Circular Bio based Europe Cabinet Cabinet of Commissioner Virginijus Sinkevičius Portfolio Environment, Oceans and Fisheries Attending - Camilla Bursi (Cabinet member)
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Date 25 Jun 2020 Location Brussels Subject VC-meeting on Farm to Fork Strategy and Pesticides. Cabinet Cabinet of Commissioner Stella Kyriakides Portfolio Health Attending - Roberto Reig Rodrigo (Cabinet member)
- Annukka Ojala (Cabinet member)
Other Lobbyists -
Date 19 Feb 2020 Location Brussels Subject Farm to Fork Cabinet Cabinet of Commissioner Stella Kyriakides Portfolio Health Attending - Annukka Ojala (Cabinet member)
- Roberto Reig Rodrigo (Cabinet member)
- Giorgios Rossides (Cabinet member)
Other Lobbyists -
Date 20 Apr 2018 Location Brussels Subject General Food Law Cabinet Cabinet of Commissioner Vytenis Andriukaitis Portfolio Health & Food Safety Attending - Nathalie Chaze (Cabinet member)
- Vytenis Andriukaitis (Commissioner)
Other Lobbyists -
Date 30 Mar 2017 Location Brussels Subject EU's Research Policy (Innovation Principle vs. Precautionary Principle) Cabinet Cabinet of Commissioner Vytenis Andriukaitis Portfolio Health & Food Safety Attending - Marco Valletta (Cabinet member)
Other Lobbyists -
Date 01 Mar 2017 Location Brussels Subject Transparency Register Cabinet Cabinet of First Vice-President Frans Timmermans Portfolio Better Regulation, Interinstitutional Relations, the Rule of Law and the Charter of Fundamental Rights Attending - Michelle Sutton (Cabinet member)
- Antoine Colombani (Cabinet member)
Other Lobbyists -
Date 09 Dec 2016 Location Brussels Subject Acrylamide Cabinet Cabinet of Commissioner Vytenis Andriukaitis Portfolio Health & Food Safety Attending - Nathalie Chaze (Cabinet member)
- Vytenis Andriukaitis (Commissioner)
Other Lobbyists -
Date 09 Mar 2016 Location Brussels Subject Glyphosate Cabinet Cabinet of Commissioner Vytenis Andriukaitis Portfolio Health & Food Safety Attending - Nathalie Chaze (Cabinet member)
Other Lobbyists -
Date 21 May 2015 Location Berlaymont, Brussels, Belgium Subject Meeting with Corporate Europe on Commissioners code of Conduct Cabinet Cabinet of Vice-President Kristalina Georgieva Portfolio Budget & Human Resources Attending - Angelina Gros-Tchorbadjiyska (Cabinet member)
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Date 15 Jan 2015 Location Brussels Subject Meeting on principles of scientific advice Cabinet Cabinet of Commissioner Carlos Moedas Portfolio Research, Science and Innovation Attending - Giulia Del Brenna (Cabinet member)
Other Lobbyists
- Meetings