A new report highlights how lobbying in Brussels hit a record high resulting in industry-friendly policies at an unprecedented rate.
According to Corporate Europe Observatory, the biggest industry lobbyists in Brussels now spend almost €381.75 million annually on lobbying EU institutions, representing an increase of “nearly 50 per cent” compared to 2020.
The report identifies 173 companies and trade associations that each declare annual lobbying budgets of at least €1 million. Together they account for what the organisation describes as the largest corporate lobbying effort ever recorded in Brussels.
The report shows that companies and trade associations from the technology, banking and finance, energy, chemicals and agri-business, and cross-sector business groups dominate the Brussels lobbying landscape.
“The highest-spenders within the tech industry have the biggest annual lobby spend overall at €73 million,” they wrote. It adds that major US technology companies including Meta and Amazon account for a significant share of that spending.
“We are living through a corporate lobby bonanza and these steadily-rising budgets show that companies regard this as a worthwhile investment that is paying off,” they insist.
The finance sector follows with €66.75 million, while energy companies account for €52 million and chemicals and agri-business organisations for €46.5 million.
According to the authors, the growing influence of corporate lobbyists is reflected in the policy direction of the second European Commission led by Ursula von der Leyen.
The report claims that the Commission’s emphasis on competitiveness and regulatory simplification has aligned closely with long-standing demands from major industry groups.
“The biggest deregulation wave ever seen in the EU” is already underway, the report states.
It points to ten so-called omnibus packages introduced by the Commission. These are broad legislative proposals designed to amend multiple pieces of EU legislation simultaneously. According to Corporate Europe Observatory, the packages affect areas including sustainability rules, investment, agriculture, chemicals, data regulation, industrial emissions and pesticides.
Corporate Europe Observatory also argues that the Commission has increasingly relied on industry consultation mechanisms as part of its regulatory review process. It points to new consultation formats, including so-called “reality checks” and “implementation dialogues”, which it says have strengthened the role of business interests in EU decision-making.
The findings are based on lobbying expenditure declarations submitted to the EU Transparency Register and analysed through LobbyFacts data. Corporate Europe Observatory notes that actual lobbying expenditure may be even higher because the figures do not include organisations spending less than €1 million annually on EU lobbying activities.
