A scandal has broken out in Brussels – namely, claims have arisen that the European Union is subsidising environmental NGOs to lobby for green policies. At the heart of the scandal is Frans Timmermans, a friend of Tanja Fajon’s who used to be the Commissioner for the European Green Deal.
Secret contracts obtained by the Dutch newspaper De Telegraaf have revealed that the European Commission has been subsidising environmental organisations for years, to lobby for the green plans of former European Commissioner Frans Timmermans.
These organisations have been given targets for lobbying with MEPs and Member States in order to secure an even more ambitious green policy for the European Union.
Grant money for lobby groups
The Czech media outlet Forum 24 reports that the European Environmental Bureau, the umbrella environmental organisation in Europe, of which the three Czech organisations – Arnika, The Association for Sustainable Living, and the Green Circle – are members, has been explicitly asked to cite at least 16 examples where their lobbying has led the European Parliament to improve the ambition of legislation on environmental policies.
Brussels used money that is normally earmarked for environmental and climate subsidies to finance its lobbying. For example, according to the Dutch media, the organisations helped to push through the controversial nature restoration law proposed by former EU Commissioner Timmermans. The contract they had access to also showed that as much as 700,000 euros in subsidies had been used to steer the agricultural debate in a green direction.
The hints had been circulating for some time
There have been hints circulating for some time that Brussels is trying to implement its green agenda through NGOs. In June 2023, De Telegraaf reported that companies were being tipped through the EU Business & Biodiversity platform on how to influence dubious politicians in the European Parliament to vote in favour of the Nature Recovery Act. Dutch MEP Dirk Gotink, who as a member of the Budgetary Control Committee is now investigating contracts for donations to environmental organisations over the last five years with a number of his colleagues, said that there were even lobby lists with the names of politicians who needed to be approached.
According to MEP Gotink, this is not about denigrating the environmental movement. Organisations have the right to lobby. Instead, he is targeting the European Commission. “This appears to be a highly organised collusion between the green coalition led by Timmermans and the centre-left majority in the European Parliament,” the MEP was critical. “I will do my utmost to ensure that similar practices never happen again. Public funds must not be misused to manipulate MEPs or the public,” pointed out Czech MEP Tomáš Zdechovský, adding that NGOs must be transparent in their operations.
Frans Timmermans decided to leave European politics in 2023 as Vice-President of the European Commission. He has announced that he will run for the leadership of the united Labour and Green Left parties in the Dutch national elections in November.
Ž. N.
