European Union

Euro-MP meets with African campaigners and pledges support for robust rules

BRUSSELS – The push for stronger transparency laws for oil, gas and mining companies is gathering pace. The European Parliament and Council are currently examining potentially groundbreaking legislation that would require all European listed as well as large private oil, gas, mining and logging companies to disclose the payments they make to governments around the world on a project by project basis.

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LONDON/STRASBOURG – Publish What You Pay, the global coalition of civil society groups, welcomes the European Commission’s proposals for EU laws that will require oil, gas, mining and logging companies to be more transparent about the payments they make to governments around the world.

On Tuesday Tearfund, a Christian relief and development agency, handed in 10,000 postcards to the UK Chancellor from supporters calling for the UK Government to tackle corruption through Publish What You Pay legislation in the EU.

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European Parliament backs Publish What You Pay rules; sends strong signal to the European Commission

LONDON/STRASBOURG – Publish What You Pay, the global coalition of civil society groups, welcomes the European Parliament’s endorsement on Tuesday of plans for EU laws that will require oil, gas and mining companies to be more

Today for the first time, the G8 endorsed mandatory disclosure of extractive industry payments to governments.

The Publish What You Pay coalition strongly welcomes the announcement by the UK Government that it will push for the implementation of oil, gas and mining transparency laws in the EU. If introduced, such laws would require that companies listed in the EU publish what they pay to governments for the extraction of minerals around the world. This will improve revenue transparency, helping to eradicate the corruption that has blighted some mineral rich states and improve the lives of millions of people in the developing world.

I am Chairperson of Publish What You Pay Uganda and work for an organisation called Global Rights Alert. In Uganda we are striving to ensure that the recently discovered oil in our country helps us fight poverty, disease and develop economically.

In a letter published on the Elysée website, President Sarkozy has publicly come out in favour of new European rules requiring oil, gas and mining companies to disclose the payments they make to governments around the world. President Sarkozy stated: ‘I have decided to ask the EU to adopt, as speedily as possible, legislation to compel industries in the extractive sector to disclose their payments to all countries in which they operate.’

Sarkozy’s statement was in response to an open letter by ONE campaign co-founder Bono, urging Sarkozy – who this year has the presidency of the G8 and the G20 – to translate his ‘transformational words’ on development into ‘transformational actions’. One of the opportunities Bono highlighted was the push for transparency in the extractive sector, reminding Sarkozy that the US passed historic legislation last July requiring listed companies to publish what they pay.

Several Members of the European Parliament (MEPs) have launched a petition against corruption. The petition calls for the European Commission and EU Member States to propose legislation and mechanisms to fight corruption, in particular in EU relations with third countries.

Publish What You Pay (PWYP) is pleased to see that of its five substantive points, the petition lists actions on transparency and revenue disclosure in the extractive industries.