Dalligate tobacco lobbyist not screened for conflicts of interest when left Commission
Key Swedish Match lobbyist in the Dalligate tobacco lobby scandal worked in the European Commission for five years. But unbelievably, when he left to become a tobacco lobbyist he was not screened for potential conflicts of interest, a clear breach of the revolving door rules in the Staff Regulations. Once again, the shoddy implementation of ethics rules by the Commission has been exposed in the wake of a big lobbying scandal.
Read the whole case on CEO's RevolvingDoorWatch here.
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“It is absolutely remarkable that the Commission did not screen Johan Gabrielsson for his job move to tobacco company Swedish Match, especially in light of all the dodgy lobbying tactics that Swedish Match has been engaged in, as revealed in the wake of the Dalligate lobby scandal. Gabrielsson himself met another revolving door case, former European Council lawyer Gayle Kimberly, in Malta, in order to facilitate contacts, using personal connections, with former Commissioner John Dalli. Not only has the Commission failed to implement the staff regulations – or taken any action when Gabrielsson failed to apply for permission – but the spirit of the UN Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC) has been undermined.
The revolving door has cropped up as a key feature in the tobacco lobby scandal nicknamed “Dalligate”. CEO believes that an automatic cooling-off period of two years on corporate lobby jobs should be enacted for all EU institution staff, and that restrictions on tobacco lobby jobs – which are restricted for public health officials, under the UN FCTC – should be extended for all public officials. This is because the tobacco industry gains inside knowledge about how the institutions work, as well as valuable contacts, not only by hiring former health officials, but former public officials in any policy area.”