European Parliament fails to remove ExxonMobil lobby badges

Yesterday, (Tuesday, 16 April) the European Parliament administration denied the Greens/EFA request to remove the Parliamentary access badges of ExxonMobil lobbyists, after they refused to attend a hearing on climate denial. The Parliament had previously removed the access badges of Monsanto following a Greens/EFA complaint on the same grounds. The Parliament administration refuted the Greens/EFA request on a technicality.

Molly Scott Cato, Greens/EFA MEP comments:

"It's deeply disappointing that ExxonMobil will continue to have the right the haunt the corridors of the Parliament, spreading their disinformation about climate change and blocking the action we need to take to protect the planet for future generations. It's ironic that this decision was taken on the very same day that climate hero Greta Thunberg was receiving the acclaim of MEPs.

"If we want a real democracy in Europe, the Parliament needs to show that it is serious when it organises public hearings on important issues, especially on issues as important as climate denialism. We need to produce a legally watertight official invitation, issue it to Exxon, and let them make a choice between being accountable or keeping out of the Parliament.

"As we crack down on lobbying that works against the interests of European citizens, we need to streamline the process for remove lobby accreditation so that other corporations can expect to hear from us."

More

ExxonMobil’s lobbyists should be removed from European Parliament: https://www.greens-efa.eu/en/article/exxonmobils-lobbyists-should-be-removed-from-european-parliament/

Greens/EFA letter to the President Tajani and to Secretary General Klaus Welle: https://www.greens-efa.eu/files/doc/docs/3c155f5187f87e587f8f32dd8af2ac4c.pdf