The briefing paper analyses the “Directive of the European Parliament and of the Council establishing harmonised requirements in the internal market on transparency of the interest representation carried out on behalf of third countries (COM (2023) 637 12/12/2023)”. This document was prepared by the informal coalition on the Defence of Democracy Package coordinated by Civil Society Europe with the contribution of other organisations namely, ALDA, Civil Liberties for Europe, European Centre for Nonprofit Law, European Civic Forum, European Partnership for Democracy, European Youth Forum, ILGA Europe, Philea, The Good Lobby and Transparency International EU.
Background
On 12 December 2023, as part of the Defence of Democracy package, the European Commission published a proposal for a directive on the transparency of interest representation on behalf of third countries. Considering the forthcoming European Parliament elections, this directive will primarily be negotiated and adopted in the next legislature. It is our understanding that the Belgian Presidency aims to agree on the Council’s General Approach by the end of June and that preliminary discussions will take place in the European Parliament over the coming months.
The brief paper
We outline our primary concerns as the undersigned civil society organisations (CSOs) and why we believe the proposal fails to address the fundamental rights issues raised during the consultation process. We welcome the need for transparency and the European Commission’s underlying concern about the increasing attempts to undermine democracy across Europe. However, we believe that the directive is not the right instrument to pursue this objective and does not address the underlying problems. On the contrary, it imposes onerous obligations on CSOs, which are among the most active actors in ensuring transparency and protecting civic space, and which play a key role in making sure that democracy is protected from internal or external threats. Thus, imposing further restrictions on civil society will weaken the crucial role that CSOs play without effectively addressing undue interference in democratic processes.
Read the full brief here