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View into the plenary hall of the Bundestag
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In the future, lobbyists will have to register in a mandatory register.
After months of wrangling, the Union and the SPD agreed on this on Tuesday evening.
Anyone wishing to lobby MPs, ministers, state secretaries or persons from department heads must give their name and information about their activities and their clients.
If he or she does not do this, there is a risk of fines of up to 50,000 euros.
"In terms of transparency, this is clear progress," said CDU negotiator Patrick Schnieder to SPIEGEL.
"That goes far beyond what has existed before." The SPD is also satisfied with the compromise, the social democratic negotiator Matthias Bartke speaks of a success.
His party actually wanted to go much further.
Until recently, the coalition partners had argued over two points in particular:
on the introduction of a so-called "executive footprint", which would have made it possible to understand which persons and organizations had contributed to a legal text;
and the question of how far the obligation to register should go.
The SPD actually wanted the lobby register to apply to all contact with the ministry, regardless of the level.
"We thought that was inappropriate," said Union politician Schnieder.
"It's about creating transparency and not creating hurdles that might prevent such contact." That is the case when excessive regulations and increased bureaucracy have a deterrent effect.
He gives the example of a person or company who applies for funding and is in contact with a ministry to discuss technical issues.
"They would then have to register in the lobby register, we don't think that's appropriate."
The footprint is missing
That is why the Union actually wanted to enforce that the obligation to register only applies to contacts with ministers and state secretaries.
"Political processes are involved, especially when laws are being drawn up," says Schnieder.
Nothing happens there that is not discussed at management level.
The fact that the law now also applies up to the level of the sub-department heads is a sustainable compromise for the Union.
A compromise that SPD politician Bartke can live with.
"We have put pressure on to expand the law as much as possible." In his opinion, the scope now envisaged will make lobbying more transparent.
“It cannot be assumed that a lobbyist who really wants to achieve something will try it below the level of the sub-department head,” he says.
The SPD was unable to convince its coalition partner to introduce an “executive footprint”.
However, the SPD primarily intended to create a lobby register, according to Bartke.
The footprint was "on top".
"But it was clear to us from the start that it would be difficult." The Union is extremely cautious when it comes to "transparency in government".
Schnieder, for his part, says that the "executive footprint" does not belong in a legislative procedure: "The executive should regulate that in its rules of procedure."
Criticism of transparency initiatives
The non-governmental organizations LobbyControl and Parliamentary Watch have been campaigning for the introduction of the mandatory lobby register for years.
Timo Lange from LobbyControl welcomed the agreement "even if it was a compromise and we would have wished for much more".
Lange regrets the lack of an »executive footprint« because it is »necessary to make the legislative process more transparent for all citizens«.
The criticism of the non-governmental organization parliament watch continues.
Your expert Roman Ebener speaks of a "sad horse trade" that does not make lobbying transparent.
Above all, the NGO criticizes the fact that lobbyists do not have to make public what topics they are working on and with whom they are in contact - a problem that an "executive footprint" would have solved.
"Only with this information can we actually draw conclusions about lobbying activities," it says in a statement.
"After the lobby scandals surrounding Nüßlein and Amthor, this is a more than disappointing compromise, just to get rid of the issue before the election."
more on the subject
Lawsuit against Agriculture Minister: Foodwatch wants to force Klöckner to disclose lobbyist contacts
Lobby register: As helpful as a Cola photo against thirstA column by Sascha Lobo
Icon: Spiegel Plus Business lobbyism in politics: The bosses and their servant state A contribution to the debate by Martin Hesse
The grand coalition had already presented a first draft for a mandatory lobby register in autumn.
Shortly before that, allegations had been made against the CDU member of the Bundestag Philipp Amthor.
He had been lobbying for Augustus Intelligence, even though he was on the board of directors and held stock options from the company.
The proceedings against Amthor were discontinued after a short time by the Berlin Public Prosecutor's Office, but the case had long since rekindled the debate about lobbying in politics.
In the draft at that time, the coalition had provided that lobbyists would only be required to register for members of the Bundestag.
Parts of the opposition and non-governmental organizations had criticized this decision and pointed out that the vast majority of the laws were drawn up at the executive level, i.e. in the ministries.
Therefore, the obligation to register must also apply there.
The coalition parties then revised the draft again under pressure from the SPD.
The current agreement came as a surprise.
SPD negotiator Bartke had recently questioned a compromise.
Since last week, however, a Union politician has been investigated again.
The CSU member Georg Nüßlein is said to have lobbied for a company that makes respiratory masks.
In return, he is said to have received 660,000 euros from the company.
After it became known that he was being investigated, he let it be known through his lawyer on Friday that he would leave his post as deputy group leader.
The lobby register could be voted on later this month.
For Bartke, however, the work does not end there.
"The next federal government with Chancellor Olaf Scholz will make an executive footprint, that is very clear," he says, referring to the upcoming federal election.
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