It’s not just Britons and Europeans who are invested in the outcome of the referendum: Several American companies are lobbying hard to keep Britain in the EU.
Continue readingInfluence Abroad: American lobbying at the European Union
Today we are excited to release an informative case study delving into American lobbying at the European Union, the first in our series "Influence Abroad."
Continue readingOpenGov Voices: Lobbying in Europe — hidden influence and privileged access
Last month, Transparency International released a report on lobbying in Europe. The findings are sobering: On average, European countries scored just 31/100 points when it comes to safeguarding against undue political influence.
Continue readingOver 100 groups sign lobbying transparency letter to EU Commission
Over one hundred NGOs from around the world, including the Sunlight Foundation, sent a joint letter to the EU Commission to urge stronger action to create a high-quality and legally-binding EU lobbying transparency register.
Continue readingEuropean Union announces new rules aimed to enhance lobbying disclosure
In the midst of scandal and U.S. trade negotiations, the European Commission announces new lobbying disclosure rules that will require top-level officials to disclose information on lobbyist contacts.
Continue readingG8 Open Data Charter Action Plan: Open data by default, but you may have to pay
Although the G7 is moving towards "open data by default," they show hesitations and difficulties to guarantee their data will be free of charge. Here are our detailed analysis on the G8 Open Data Charter Action Plan.
Continue readingSunlight stands with Hungarian civil society
Sunlight is standing in solidarity with Hungarian civil society organizations in light of recent attacks by the government.
Continue readingLack of consistency generates lack of transparency in EU elections
Despite its growing powers, the European Parliament has done little in the past to create transparency around the financing of the elections.
Continue readingThe EU lobbyist register needs fixing
After a summer of debate, the EU working group responsible for reviewing the joint lobbyist register of the European Commission and European Parliament is poised to make recommendations for the future of the register. Strong regulations can shed light on how lobbyists shape the policy making process in the EU. However, the register in its current form is “unsustainable, misguided and simply not credible” -- according to a detailed report by the ALTER - EU, a coalition of about 200 civil society groups, trade unions, academics and public affairs firms concerned with the increasing influence exerted by corporate lobbyists on the political agenda in Europe.
The Sunlight Foundation applauds efforts to create more transparency around lobbying in the EU and encourages everyone to sign the petition launched by the ALTER-EU coalition.
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