The European Parliament, the Council and the Commission Hold Second Round of Negotiations on a Mandatory Transparency Register

On 12 June 2018, negotiators from the three institutions continued their discussions on strengthening the EU Transparency Register.

EP negotiators, Vice-President Sylvie Guillaume and Chair of the Constitutional Affairs Committee Danuta Hübner, together with Deputy Minister for the Bulgarian Presidency Monika Panayotova and Commission First Vice-President Frans Timmermans committed to make further  progress towards a common interpretation of the key issue of conditionality.

The three institutions discussed ways to make their interactions with interest representatives conditional on the registration of such representatives in the Transparency Register. Establishing this principle will provide citizens with more information about who seeks to influence the EU legislative process, allowing them to better scrutinise how EU decision-making works.

Monika Panayotova, Deputy Minister for the Bulgarian Presidency of the Council, said:

"Our discussion today marked a substantial step forward and will pave the way - hopefully - for a swift progress on this important political dossier. The political will and political commitment for more transparency in interactions with interest representatives have been clearly confirmed from Council's side. We are looking for practical, pragmatic and legally sound solutions for the three institutions".

The three institutions reiterated their common ambition to reach a meaningful improvement on the status quo, and their commitment to ensure the transparency of the negotiating process itself.

Background

The European Commission presented its proposal for a new inter-institutional agreement on a mandatory Transparency Register for lobbyists covering the European...