Articles

Few forms of financial speculation are as perverse or damaging as the speculation in food prices, or have such dramatic and immediate effects. Despite this, the financial lobby has skillfully defended its territory and if politicians lack focus, the plans to curb speculation might be lost at the last moment.

The proposed Bill to regulate lobbying will be discussed in the House of Commons this week and it has managed to unite MPs on both sides of the House in derision. One Labour MP has called it a "dog's breakfast", while a Conservative MP said that was inaccurate because "far more thought has gone into pet nutrition". So what is wrong with the Bill?

The EU’s woefully inadequate legislation to tackle climate change and ensure sustainable energy use in Europe sits on the backdrop of a revolving door between the Commission’s energy staff and the energy industry lobby. Two new RevolvingDoorWatch cases illustrate how a serious loophole in the revolving door rules is enabling those writing climate and energy policies to move straight into the industries affected by them.

Recent revelations about dubious dealings by former Commissioner John Dalli in the Bahamas, involving millions of euros and international con artists, have opened the door to a new chapter of Dalligate. However this new chapter may end, there are some clear implications for the ethics rules intended to govern Commissioners.

To help it in its plans to tackle the eurocrisis, the European Commission has set up an advisory group, the “Expert Group on debt redemption fund and eurobills”. Both ideas – a debt redemption fund and eurobills – are a move towards debt mutualisation, i.e. spreading the debt burden and borrowing costs away from the eurozone’s worst-hit economies towards the stronger ones.

The European Central Bank is "helping" the Commission and the Council design a future Financial Transaction Tax for Europe. This should be of major concern to its proponents, as the ECB can only be expected to side with the financial lobby.

This week marks the first round of negotiations for a far-reaching transatlantic trade deal. In the face of growing opposition to plans for expanded corporate powers in the proposed pact, the European Commission is trying to dispel concerns with propaganda. See through the rosy PR with Corporate Europe Observatory’s guide to investor-state dispute settlement.

With a crucial European Parliament ENVI committee vote on new tobacco legislation taking place later this week, this new report sheds some light on the extent and scope of tobacco lobbying in the Parliament.

The first round of negotiations of the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Agreement (TTIP) is starting today in Washington. With an open letter to President Obama, EU Commission President Barroso and EU Council President Van Rompuy, more than 60 organisations from Europe and the US have raised their voice. The letter shows their concerns about the coming negotiations and states their opposition to the use of behind-closed-door trade negotiations to change and lower public interest measures for the sake of commercial interests. CEO is one of the signatories.