At least a dozen dubious entries in the Commission's lobby register

At least twelve organisations registered in the Commission’s lobbying register could be more virtual than real. Here’s the story of how I found out.

It all started when I tried to figure out who on the European Commission’s Register of Interest Representatives spends most on lobbying. It turned out that one registrant stands head and shoulders above the rest. The obscure Fares Bank Ltd, headquartered in London and directed by “Mr Willy Bergher”, reports to have spent an amazing 250 million euro on lobbying the EU institutions in 2008, dwarfing Hill & Knowlton International Belgium (8,143,400 euro in 2007) and Burson Marsteller (6,963,000 EUR in 2007) which take second and third place.

A visit to the website of Fares Bank Ltd got me curious. The site is quite odd in many respects, redirecting visitors to another URL (http://www.ha4a.net/db/faresbank/index.php?lang=english) and prominently announcing that “Fares Bank Ltd is a company registered at the "European Commission" to No. 80756441078-18” – which appears to be somewhat clumsy attempt to lend this ‘bank’ more credibility. Fares Bank's London address coincides with that of a company renting virtual offices.

A whois search showed that the bank’s website is registered by a certain Gennaro Ruggiero from Prato, a city not far from Florence, Italy. Following that trail I discovered a series of inter-related organisations and websites where one cannot help but wonder whether these organisations are real or just imaginary.

As a next step, I checked if some of these other organisations appear in the EC lobbying register. And voilà: no less than twelve registrations linked directly or indirectly to Mr. Ruggiero (see list below).

It is a strange kettle of fish – and I am at a loss to explain what is going on. But I cannot help but wonder how these twelve organisations are registered on what is supposed to be a tool for transparency. Because the Commission does not seriously screen registrations – or at least they do not appear to – citizens visiting the register are left questioning the reliability of the information it contains. The current lack of oversight is a big disappointment for all pro-transparency campaigners.

But my surprises didn’t end at the Commission register. I also found Gennaro Ruggiero and Giuseppe Catapano on the list of registered lobbyists at the European Parliament, representing the Osservatorio Parlamentare Europeo e del Consiglio d'Europa (see list below). Being on the EP register means that these two ‘gentlemen’ have permanent access badges to the European Parliament buildings. It makes one wonder how this could ever happen.

The Ruggiero network on the EC lobbying register

• ASSOCIAZIONE INTERNAZIONALE GIORNALISTI FREE LANCE
  
  Registration date: 21-01-2009 9:38:04 PM
  
  Person legally responsible for the organisation: Mr MASSIMILIANO RUGGIERO
  
  Links with Ruggiero network: AIG Freelance statutes list Gennaro Ruggiero as President of the Association
  
  Other peculiarities: Rudimentary website

• CICS ONLUS : COMITATO INTERNAZIONALE COOPERAZIONE SVILUPPO
  
  Registration date: 21-01-2009 9:23:42 PM
  
  Person legally responsible for the organisation: Mr FRANCESCO CANDURA
  
  Link(s) with Ruggiero network: website registered by RUGGIERO, ALESSANDRO ; On the CICS ONLUS website, Gennaro Ruggiero is listed as President of the organisation (General Secretary: Dr Francesco Candura; Press Office Director: Alessandro Ruggiero)
  
  Other peculiarities: The CICS ONLUS website has a similar design and the same host system as that of FARES BANK LTD

• FARES BANK LTD
  
  Registration date: 06-02-2009 7:28:37 AM
  
  Person legally responsible for the organisation: Mr Willy Bergher
  
  Link(s) with Ruggiero network: website registered by Gennaro Ruggiero
  
  Other peculiarities: The FARES BANK website has a similar design and the same host system as that of CICS ONLUS

• ITALIA OPERA
  
  Registration date: 03-02-2009 10:49:14 AM
  
  Person legally responsible for the organisation: Mr Luigi Dott. Conti
  
  Link(s) with Ruggiero network: "partner con OPEEQ, OPE - Osservatorio Parlamentare Europeo, MEDA - Movimento Europeo Diversamente Abili, CICS - Comitato Internazionale Cooperazione Sviluppo" ; Same Brussels address as OPEEQ
  
  Other peculiarities: The website of Italia Opera is under construction

• OBSERVATORY ON TOURISM IN THE EUROPEAN ISLANDS
  
  Registration date: 02-02-2009 12:51:19 PM
  
  Person legally responsible for the organisation: Mr GIOVANNI RUGGIERI
  
  Link(s) with Ruggiero network:
  
  Other peculiarites: The website of the Observatory on Tourism in the European Islands" is under construction"

• OPEEQ : ORDINE PROFESSIONALE EUROCONSULENTI EUROPROGETTISTI QUALIFICATI7
  
  Registration date: 21-01-2009 1:40:56 PM
  
  Person legally responsible for the organisation: Mr FRANCESCO ISIDORO CANDURA
  
  Link(s) with Ruggiero network: Francesco Candura also is registered as the legal resposible person for CICS ONLUS; The organigram on the OPEEQ website lists Dr Gennaro Ruggiero as Secretary General and one of the three "Giudici di Pace del Collegio Arbitrale Internazionale", Mr. Massimiliano Ruggiero as "Consigliere addetto ufficio stampa e propaganda" and Mr. Alessandro Ruggiero as "Responsabile Web e Marketing"
  
  Other peculiarites: Rudimentary website

• OPEITALIA
  
  Registration date: 06-02-2009 8:54:09 PM
  
  Person legally responsible for the organisation: Mr Adriano Dott. Femiano
  
  Link(s) with Ruggiero network: Gennaro Ruggiero is listed as contact address for the organisation
  
  Other peculiarites: Rudimentary website

• OPE ITALIA - OSSERVATORIO PARLAMENTARE EUROPEO "ITALIA"
  
  Registration date: 07-02-2009 5:35:47 PM
  
  Person legally responsible for the organisation: Mr Adriano Dott. Femiano
  
  Link(s) with Ruggiero network: This registration is almost identical to that of OPEITALIA
  
  Other peculiarites: Rudimentary website

• OPE : OSSERVATORIO PARLAMENTARE EUROPEO E DEL CONSIGLIO D'EUROPA ®
  
  Registration date: 21-01-2009 8:44:59 PM
  
  Person legally responsible for the organisation: Mr Gennaro Ruggiero (Presidente)
  
  Link(s) with Ruggiero network: On the OPE website, Gennaro Ruggiero is listed as "Adviser of the President" (of OPE), together with Dr Francesco Isidoro Candura. Dr. Francesco Mario Ioppolo is listed as president of the organisation. This registration is to some extent similar to that of OSSERVATORIO PARLAMENTARE EUROPEO e del Consiglio D'Europa (below)
  
  Other peculiarites: Rudimentary website ; the OPE address in Brussels (rue de la Presse 4) coincides with that of a company renting virtual offices

• OSSERVATORIO PARLAMENTARE EUROPEO e del Consiglio D'Europa
  
  Registration date: 26-12-2008 11:24:48 PM
  
  Person legally responsible for the organisation: Mr Giuseppe Catapano (Presidente & segretario generale)
  
  Link(s) with Ruggiero network: This registration is to some extent similar to that of OPE : OSSERVATORIO PARLAMENTARE EUROPEO E DEL CONSIGLIO D'EUROPA, but with completely different budget figures
  
  Other peculiarites: Rudimentary website

• Ruggiero Gennaro
  
  Registration date: 21-01-2009 11:47:57 PM
  
  Person legally responsible for the organisation: Mr Dott. Gennaro Ruggiero
  
  Link(s) with Ruggiero network: Obvious -- This is the company of "Mr Dottore Gennaro Ruggiero" himself, listing as his "clients" OPEEQ and CICS.
  
  Other peculiarites: Rudimentary website

• UNITA' DEMOCRATICA LIBERALE
  
  Registration date: 21-01-2009 10:57:07 PM
  
  Person legally responsible for the organisation: Mr ALESSANDRO RUGGIERO
  
  Link(s) with Ruggiero network: On the UDL website Mr. Gennaro Ruggiero is listed as "Segretario Nazionale"
  
  Other peculiarites: Rudimentary website (not listed in EC register)