Accountability of public policy making Regulations on transparency of policy influence

Regulatory framework for transparency in lobbying, conflict-of-interest and political finance

Review of the regulatory framework for transparency in lobbying activities, management of conflict-of-interest situations and financing of political parties and campaigns. National authorities are asked to provide reference to provisions that meet the criteria below. Criteria 1 to 2 on transparency in lobbying activities are based on OECD Recommendation of the Council on Principles for Transparency and Integrity in Lobbying (2010) and Recommendation of the Committee of Ministers to member States on the legal regulation of lobbying activities in the context of public decision makingCM/Rec (2017)2. For any of these criteria to be fulfilled the regulatory framework must apply to the executive, legislative and judicial branches of government. Criteria 3 to 7 on managing conflict-of-interest situations are based on the OECD Guidelines for Managing Conflict of Interest in the Public Sector (2003), the G20 High-Level Principles for Preventing and Managing Conflict of Interest in the Public Sector (2018). Criteria 8 to 16 on financing of political parties and election campaigns are based on the Recommendation 1516 (2001) of the Council of Europe Parliamentary Assembly, the Recommendation (2003) 4 of the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe, the Council of Europe Venice Commission Guidelines on the Financing of Political Parties, (2001) and Code of Good Practice in Electoral Matters (2002); the Guidelines on Political Party Regulation by OSCE/ODIHR and Venice Commission (2010), and the UN Convention Against Corruption.

Subindicators fulfilled per country

Lobbying activities are defined in the regulatory framework, including which actors are considered as lobbyists.

Cooling off periods for public officials are established in the regulatory framework.

Cooling off periods for lobbyists are established in the regulatory framework.

Regulations list incompatibilities between public functions and other public or private activities.

Regulations define circumstances and relationships that can lead to conflict-of-interest situations for public officials and establish the obligation to manage them.

Regulations define institutional responsibilities as well as submission, compliance, and content verification procedures for conflict-of-interest or interest declarations.

Any member of the Government must submit an interest declaration, as a minimum upon entry and any renewal or change in public office.

Any member of the parliament must submit an interest declaration, as a minimum upon entry and any renewal or change in public office.

Any member of the highest bodies of the judiciary must submit an interest declaration, as a minimum upon entry and any renewal or change in public office.

Any public employee in a high-risk position must submit an interest declaration, as a minimum upon entry and any renewal or change in public office.

Any newly appointed or reappointed top-tier civil servant of the executive branch must submit an interest declaration.

Sanctions for breaches of conflict-of-interest provisions are defined and proportional to the severity of the offence.

Sanctions for breaches of political finance and election campaign regulations are defined and proportional to the severity of the offence.

Sanctions for breaches of standards for transparency and integrity in lobbying are defined and proportional to the severity of the offence.

Electoral candidates can be held personally liable for breaches and be sanctioned.

Regulations ban anonymous donations, and all contributions made to political parties and/or candidates must be registered and reported.

Regulations ban contributions from foreign states or enterprises.

Regulations ban contributions from publicly owned enterprises.

Electoral campaign expenses for parties, candidates and third parties are limited to a ceiling.

Parties and/or candidates must report their finances (funding and expenses) during electoral campaigns.

Regulations ban the use of public funds and resources in favour of or against a political party.

Regulations set a threshold for personal contributions to candidates’ personal campaigns.

Political parties must make financial reports public, including all contributions exceeding a fixed ceiling.

Beneficial ownership rules make mandatory the disclosure of company data to identify owners of corporations, establish a central register, and make information accessible to the public.