The OECD's report on lobbying demonstrates the need for greater transparency around the lobbying activities of key players – particularly corporations with vested interests in policy outcomes and the trade associations that represent them.
The OECD report, Lobbying in the 21st Century, finds that transparency measures have not kept pace with evolving trends in lobbying, that the abuse of lobbying practices leads to suboptimal policies, and that promoting only special interests runs the risk of abandoning policies that would otherwise correct market failures.
When it comes to climate change policy, these issues are clearly on display. InfluenceMap’s metrics for tracking corporate lobbying on climate have repeatedly demonstrated how major businesses and trade associations use their influence to block or water down Paris-aligned climate action.
The OECD report cites several pieces of analysis prepared by InfluenceMap, including:
A report showing how Big Oil spent $1 billion on narrative capture and lobbying on climate. A briefing paper looking at how the European cement industry undermined the original ambition of the EU Emissions Trade System. A report examining the negative influence of trade associations on climate policy. InfluenceMap’s ongoing scoring of key companies and trade associations.
InfluenceMap’s Executive Director Dylan Tanner said: “Corporations have a profound influence over government policy, especially when economic interests are at stake. This is certainly the case with the level of government intervention now required on climate change.
“InfluenceMap's work shows that the corporate sector has a disproportionate influence via its lobbying, and that the narrow group of companies most negatively affected by policy changes are more likely to lobby the most effectively and strategically.
“This 'disproportionate influence' effect is also present within the large and powerful cross sector business groups like the US Chamber and BusinessEurope. This explains the disconnect between these groups and the majority of their members on climate.
“InfluenceMap's work also demonstrates a major gap between transparency on corporate lobbying activities and investor expectations in understanding corporate behavior.
“Voluntary efforts to bridge this disclosure gap have been tried, but have largely failed to generate meaningful data.
“Scandals like ‘dieselgate’ demonstrate why a clear understanding of corporate interactions with regulations is material for investors and important for society more broadly.
“It is reasonable to expect that the issue of climate lobbying should be a central part of binding corporate disclosures to investors, and that companies are held accountable for the accuracy and comprehensiveness of the information.”
For further information or to arrange interviews, please contact:
Simon Cullen, Communications Manager, InfluenceMap (London)
simon.cullen( @ )influencemap.org
