Lobbying in Europe Public Affairs and the Lobbying Industry in 28 EU Countries Edited by Alberto Bitonti and Phil Harris Lobbying in Europe ‘Professors Bitonti and Harris have produced a timely, relevant work for any- one interested in the actual practice and effectiveness of lobbying in Europe. As Europe moves ever so gradually toward Brussels and the EU as the center of policy and regulations, so to must corporations and other interests learn to simultane- ously carry out lobbying in the home country and in Brussels. It is a balancing act that requires skill and timing – and this work delivers on both.’ — Professor John Mahon, University of Maine, USA ‘Bitonti and Harris have produced an impressive tome on the dark arts of how businesses and NGO should seek political influence. No self-respecting public affairs practitioner should be without this impressive, and thoroughly comprehen- sive, text surveying lobbying across all of the EU.’ — Professor Paul Baines, Cranfield University, UK ‘The rich descriptions of lobbying and political processes across Europe provide a practical handbook for professionals as well as invaluable grist to the mill for academics and others seeking to better explore the workings of modern European democracies. It clarifies the role of and demystifies the misunderstood and misrep- resented profession of lobbying. It also provides valuable insights into the com- plexities of BREXIT’ — Geoff Allen, AM, Chairman of Australian Centre for Corporate Public Affairs and Director ACILAllen Consulting, Australia ‘This is one of those books that gives professional insight into the working and traditions of European Public Affairs. It is a must read for anybody, lobbyist, gov- ernment official, academic or student who wants to understand how Europe and the EU works. It reflects professional lobbyist and quality academic thought. A guide to lobbying in the EU.’ — Professor Henry Sun, International Director, Business Research Institute, University of Chester, UK Alberto Bitonti • Phil Harris Editors Lobbying in Europe Public Affairs and the Lobbying Industry in 28 EU Countries Editors Alberto Bitonti Phil Harris IES Abroad Rome University of Chester Rome, Italy Chester, UK ISBN 978-1-137-55255-6 ISBN 978-1-137-55256-3 (eBook) DOI 10.1057/978-1-137-55256-3 Library of Congress Control Number: 2016961690 © The Editor(s) (if applicable) and The Author(s) 2017 The author(s) has/have asserted their right(s) to be identified as the author(s) of this work in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988. This work is subject to copyright. All rights are solely and exclusively licensed by the Publisher, whether the whole or part of the material is concerned, specifically the rights of translation, reprinting, reuse of illustrations, recitation, broadcasting, reproduction on microfilms or in any other physical way, and transmission or information storage and retrieval, electronic adaptation, computer software, or by similar or dissimilar methodology now known or hereafter developed. The use of general descriptive names, registered names, trademarks, service marks, etc. in this publication does not imply, even in the absence of a specific statement, that such names are exempt from the relevant protective laws and regulations and therefore free for general use. The publisher, the authors and the editors are safe to assume that the advice and information in this book are believed to be true and accurate at the date of publication. Neither the publisher nor the authors or the editors give a warranty, express or implied, with respect to the material contained herein or for any errors or omissions that may have been made. Cover image © Image Source / Alamy Stock Photo Printed on acid-free paper This Palgrave Macmillan imprint is published by Springer Nature The registered company is Macmillan Publishers Ltd. The registered company address is: The Campus, 4 Crinan Street, London, N1 9XW, United Kingdom A cknowledgements In assembling, editing and turning this volume into a reality, we have a debt of immense gratitude which we need to make towards a number of key people that we wish to thank for their contribution, support and presence. First, all contributors, some of you have never written for an academic research book, others have, we thank all of you for your enthusiasm, your patience and unfailing support to the project. A special thank you to Conor McGrath, whose constant support and advice has meant so much, and to Simon Bryceson for agreeing to give us the measured EU view and being such a good friend with principled advice. Jim Thurber for his constant friendship and the Center for Congressional and Presidential Studies and the American University of Washington DC for all their encouragement, help and academic support. To Nikos Nikolakakis, your help at critical times was particularly pre- cious and appreciated. Giuseppe Mazzei, Micol Bertoni and all the friends of the Public Affairs Community of Europe and Il Chiostro: this volume was first conceived in one of our meetings, we hope it will contribute to our battle for greater transparency. To our publisher Palgrave for supporting this initiative and being very patient, and especially Sara Crowley-Vigneau and Jemima Warren, our great editors, for their support and kindness throughout the journey. Without your support, this would never have happened. v vi ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS Finally, to our wonderful and amazingly supportive wives, Claudia and Irene, who supported us with empathy, good humour and patience untiringly even though we were travelling around the world, rebuilding houses, advising politicians, officials, friends and stuck on keyboards or in Skype conversations constantly. You deserve a medal, we will celebrate with a dinner together in the near future. Promise. Thank you. Alberto Bitonti and Phil Harris c ontents 1 An Introduction to Lobbying and Public Affairs in Europe 1 Alberto Bitonti and Phil Harris 2 The Role of Lobbying in Modern Democracy: A Theoretical Framework 17 Alberto Bitonti 3 The EU Institutions 31 Simon Levitt, Simon Bryceson and Frederick van Mierlo 4 Austria 45 Peter Köppl 5 Belgium 59 Tine Destrooper 6 Bulgaria 69 Detelina Dineva vii viii CONTENTS 7 Croatia 79 Natko Vlahović and Dubravka Sincǐć Ćorić 8 Cyprus 89 Maria Krambia-Kapardis and Christina Neophytidou 9 Czech Republic 103 Štěpán Soukeník, Miloš Gregor and Anna Matušková 10 Denmark 113 Peter Andreas Münster and Andreas Hjørnholm 11 Estonia 121 Ott Lumi and Andreas Kaju 12 Finland 131 Kimmo Collander, Eero Rämö and Urho Blom 13 France 143 Didier Sallé and Francesco Marchi 14 Germany 159 Dominik Meier 15 Greece 171 George Limperis 16 Hungary 177 József Péter Martin and Miklós Ligeti 17 Ireland 195 Gary Murphy CONTENTS ix 18 Italy 207 Pier Luigi Petrillo 19 Latvia 219 Valts Kalniņš 20 Lithuania 227 Saulius Spurga 21 Luxembourg 237 Paul-Michael Schonenberg 22 Malta 245 Mark Harwood 23 The Netherlands 255 Peter JG van Keulen 24 Poland 263 Witold Michalek 25 Portugal 271 Joaquim Martins-Lampreia 26 Romania 279 Laura Florea and Bogdan Dima 27 Slovakia 293 Patrik Zoltvany 28 Slovenia 299 Danica Fink-Hafner x CONTENTS 29 Spain 313 María Rosa Rotondo Ruiz and Rafael Rubio Núñez 30 Sweden 325 Anna-Karin Hedlund 31 United Kingdom 333 Conor McGrath 32 Lobbying and Public Affairs in Europe: Some Comparative Remarks 351 Alberto Bitonti, Phil Harris and Claudia Mariotti Index 363