On Thursday 2 December, the European Commission tried to play down shortcomings in the European Transparency Register, which records meetings between Commissioners and lobbyists (see EUROPE 12714/15).
“The Transparency Register concerns meetings with interest representatives or representatives of civil society, i.e. either companies or NGOs. There is no obligation to register meetings with, for example, members of the EU Court of Auditors in the transparency register”, replied European Commission spokesman Eric Mamer.
He was being questioned following an article printed in the daily newspaper Libération on 1 December, referring to the participation, on 13 December 2015, of European Commissioner Johannes Hahn in a hunting party organised by the lobby European Landowners’ Organisation (ELO).
The Commission also argued that the invitation had not been issued by ELO, but by a former member of the Court, the Belgian Karel Pinxten, who had in fact breached his obligations as a member of the EU Court of Auditors (see EUROPE 12802/23).
Thus, for the Commission, when it comes to events of a social nature or meetings with representatives of public institutions, “such meetings should not be included in the transparency register, according to the current rules”.
The Libération article also mentions Mr Hahn’s attendance at several dinners organised by Karel Pinxten, notably in December 2015. (Original version in French by Lionel Changeur)