Towards a more integrated approach to lobbying and political finance regulation in the EU

Lobbying and the giving of donations to political parties are viewed as integral to a democratic process, providing alternative means of political participation for many corporate actors, interest groups, among others (International IDEA 2020, 2022). While lobbying and political donations are closely intertwined in their intentions to influence policy discourse and outcomes, they are often subject to separate and siloed regulations. The recent development in the European Union (EU) highlights that it is crucial to look at both issues in a more comprehensive and integrated manner. In this context, two key revisions to this discourse should be considered by EU policymakers; i) make data on donations available in a systematic and easy-to-process format and ii) link information on donations with data on lobbying.