Recent revelations expose the significant yet often hidden role of business lobbying in shaping Europe’s Green Deal and other sustainability policies. A new report highlights how business lobbying helped influence the exclusion of financial services companies from the European Union’s Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive (CSDDD), a key environmental regulation. This law, designed to hold companies accountable for their supply chains, faced opposition from major business associations, including the Italian Stock Exchange (Borsa Italiana) and the French insurers’ association (AAM), despite their public sustainability claims. 

The report, using the “Social LobbyMap” methodology, traces how lobbying by these companies and trade associations led to the exclusion of the finance sector from the scope of the directive. This move sparked criticism from groups like the United Nations Working Group on Business and Human Rights, which condemned the exclusion. Analysis revealed that eight out of ten trade associations lobbied against including the financial sector in the regulation, while only a few organizations, such as Spain’s Seguros RGA, actively supported it. 

This gap between public sustainability commitments and behind-the-scenes lobbying activities challenges the idea that all businesses oppose environmental regulations. The findings emphasize the need for transparency in business lobbying, particularly regarding ESG (Environmental, Social, and Governance) issues. As the European Commission plans a consultation on the CSDDD and its future implementation, businesses will face increasing scrutiny over their lobbying efforts. Companies are being urged to align their public sustainability commitments with their lobbying practices to avoid undermining their ESG credibility and carbon-neutral strategy goals. The “Social LobbyMap” aims to hold businesses accountable for their influence on climate and sustainability legislation, ensuring a genuine commitment to responsible practices. 

Sources:  

https://www.socialeurope.eu/eu-business-lobbying-on-sustainability-exposed 

https://www.thegoodlobby.eu/eu-business-lobbying-on-sustainability-exposed/ 

https://foodpackagingforum.org/news/growing-concerns-around-industry-lobbying-in-the-eu