Chief Executive Officer of Irish airline Ryanair Michael O'Leary with a model airplane | Dani Pozo/AFP/Getty Images How Ryanair flew around Ireland’s lobbying laws The airline found a way to navigate confusing new disclosure rules.

Confusion over Ireland's recent overhaul of its transparency laws is now reverberating in Brussels, as lobbyists and the lobbied struggle to figure out what to do when it comes to Irish officials working in the EU.

The lack of clarity on how the new rules apply to lobbying activity was illustrated by low-cost airline Ryanair's vigorous defense of its decision not to report contact with an Irish member of the European Parliament in January, even though MEPs fall under the country's lobbying register.

Another recent case involved Ireland's member of the European Commission, who wound up on the Irish register by mistake after meeting a lobbyist in Ireland, only to then fall foul of another transparency regime — that of the EU.

These incidents, which in the past would have remained hidden from the public, reveal how the combination of national and EU transparency rules are exposing to greater scrutiny both local and multinational companies, along with the governments that regulate them.

The 2015 Irish lobbying rules marked a turning point in the push for greater disclosure of lobbying activity in Europe. With France now expected to introduce a transparency register later this year, a future in which lobbying activity can be cross-referenced on a range of databases appears imminent.

Ryanair was adamant that its membership of a European aviation industry association meant it did not have to report its interactions with Irish officials in the EU.

It is an evolution which has not pleased everyone. When contacted by POLITICO, Ryanair was adamant that its membership of a European aviation industry association meant it did not have to report its interactions with Irish officials in the EU.

A Ryanair spokesman said the budget airline's boss, Michael O'Leary, had met an Irish MEP in Brussels as a member of a Brussels-based airline association, Airlines 4 Europe (A4E), not as the CEO of Ryanair.

O'Leary visited the European Parliament on January 27 for an event described in a press release as a meeting with “MEPs, EU officials and economists” to talk about the airline industry. The event was organized by center-right Irish MEP Deirdre Clune, who is a member of the Committee for Transport and Tourism.

Under Ireland's strict new legislation, any lobbyist contacting an Irish official must report the interaction on the lobbying register. Unlike the EU's transparency register, it is up to the lobbyist, not the lobbied, to make the disclosure.

In emailed statements, Ryanair said its membership of A4E shielded it from requirements under Ireland's 2015 lobbying reforms and the company would not be including the meeting at the next reporting deadline for the Irish register, which is May 21.

According to the press release of the event, O'Leary addressed the January conference as a member of A4E, which was confirmed by the MEP he met, Clune. Besides Ryanair, the group's other members include International Airlines Group, Air France-KLM, easyJet and Finnair.

"A4E is not covered or bound or required to register under the Irish Lobbying Act," the spokesperson said.

“You may note that the European Cockpit Association is not [on the Irish register], despite the fact that it lobbied Irish MEPs," another spokesperson said, in a subsequent email. "Have you asked them the same question?"

Ryanair said it would not explain on which grounds it had decided Irish lobbying legislation did not apply to its January meeting with the MEP. A spokesperson at A4E's Brussels office said he was not aware of the requirements of Ireland's lobbying laws.

Some wiggle room



According to the head of lobbying regulation at Ireland’s Standards in Public Office Commission, Sherry Perreault, the country's transparency laws apply to the lobbying of Irish officials, whether or not they are in Ireland when they are contacted.

While Perreault would not comment on individual cases, she pointed to the parts of the 2015 Regulation of Lobbying Act which might be invoked by lobbyists wanting to meet Irish officials through EU industry associations. They offer Ryanair some loopholes.

The law says that if contact with a public official is "carried out by a person acting in a voluntary capacity, it is not regarded as a lobbying activity" unless the communication was directed "by an employee of the body" or a "person who holds paid office."

In this case, A4E says it called on O'Leary to attend the parliamentary event, given that he was the "only CEO of our group" available. "[W]e asked him if he could shift meetings to join the event," the organization said. "If he [hadn't] jumped in, we wouldn't have had anyone at the event."

The act also says that "representative bodies" fall under the legislation only if they have "one or more full-time employees." A4E, which was launched on January 20 and has yet to finalize its registration process in Belgium, on paper did not have a single employee at the time of O'Leary's meeting.

A4E was launched at a January event in Amsterdam, attended by Transport Commissioner Violeta Bulc. The event was reported on the commissioner's website.

A4E is not yet signed up to the EU's transparency register, but its individual members are. It has just appointed a managing director, Thomas Reynaert, who started work on March 1, and is expected to build up to an office of six.

Commissioners caught up

The Irish lobbying reforms, which came into effect on September 1, 2015, require lobbyists to declare any contact they may have, including emails and phone calls, with anyone designated a "public official."

According to Ireland’s Standards in Public Office Commission, both MEPs and the Irish permanent representative and deputy permanent representative to the EU fall into the definition of "public official."

The laws do not regard Ireland's member of the European Commission, Phil Hogan, as an Irish official. But that wasn't clear to at least one lobbyist, who appears to have made a mistake and listed an interaction with Hogan, who is the commissioner for agriculture and rural development.

Agribusiness Aurivo does not appear to be on the EU Transparency Register, which would place the meeting it had with the commissioner in violation of the EU's transparency code of conduct.

Agribusiness Aurivo Co-operative disclosed a contact with Hogan on September 25, 2015, for what it described as the "official opening of Aurivo Head Offices," which are in Sligo, in the west of Ireland.

However, the meeting was not reported on Hogan's Commission website. What's more, Aurivo does not appear to be on the EU Transparency Register, which would place the meeting with the commissioner in violation of the EU's transparency code of conduct.

An Aurivo manager said he reported the meeting with Hogan because, after reading information contained on the Irish lobbying register, he was under the impression that it applied to all Irish EU officials. He also said the opening ceremony went well and that Hogan was a "terribly nice individual."

Hogan’s office said while the event had been publicly announced beforehand, it should have been included in the commissioner's disclosure of meetings and would be added when it is next updated. Hogan did not explain why he met a lobbyist not signed up to the EU Transparency Register.