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After the interinstitutional EP-EC working group on the review of the EU lobby Transparency Register had its closing meeting, there is confusion over outcome of EP-EC working group. Was agreement reached between MEPs and Commissioner Šefčovič on making the register mandatory or not?

In the light of the clear risks which the TTIP talks pose to environmental and health protection, it is crucial that the EU's lobby transparency register helps create full visibility around industry lobbying of TTIP talks. Only a mandatory register which requires comprehensive and reliable information about lobbying will shed light on corporate lobby pressure on the TTIP talks.

Law firms are campaigning for exemptions to the EU lobby register and it looks very much as if Commissioner Šefčovič and Rainer Wieland MEP are keen to help them out.

In October, the New York Times published an in-depth article on the Brussels lobbying of US law firms such as Covington & Burling, Hogan Lovells and Baker Botts. The article describes how these firms are lobbying on behalf of large US-based multinationals to weaken EU environment and health standards, and how they have hired several former Commission officials while refusing to join the EU’s voluntary lobby register.

Is the Commission right to be jubilant about the latest report on the EU Transparency Register? CEO says no, as hundreds of companies and lobby groups actively lobbying to influence EU decision-making, continue to boycott the register.

At a press conference in the European Parliament on 28 November, Professor Gilles-Eric Séralini and Corinne Lepage MEP strongly denounced the decision of the scientific journal Food and Chemical Toxicology to de-publish his study on the health impacts of Monsanto's GM maize NK603 - made tolerant to herbicide Roundup - and of Roundup itself. The study was published over a year ago.

Amazon, also known for tax evasion and abominable working conditions, is one of a large number of companies that exploit the EU’s weak lobby transparency rules. The company is lobbying heavily to influence decision-making in Brussels but refuses to sign up to the Transparency Register for lobbyists, which is voluntary rather than mandatory.

Europe already has new rules which lock in privatisation, job cuts, and automatic austerity for member states – via the obscurely named Six-Pack, Two-Pack and Fiscal Compact legislation.

Corporate Europe Observatory, as a member of Climate Justice Now, was asked to take part in a closing press conference at the UN climate talks on Friday 22 November. As we had already walked out of the talks, we were not able to deliver it in person, but instead presented a short written text, which we've made available below.