There are good reasons for a transport minister to speak to as many sides as possible. The transport sector must make its contribution to more climate protection: driving bans due to bad air in cities, speed limits or the debate about a ban on short-haul flights – here, as in only a few other ministries, environmental and economic interests need to be balanced. But ex-minister Andreas Scheuer (CSU) set clear priorities. It was 80: 1 at lobby meetings between the auto industry and environmental groups from taking office until June of this year. Environmental groups were never on board at car summits.
At the start of the new federal government, a prominent NGO alliance of Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD), Transport Minister Volker Wissing (FDP) and Economics Minister Robert Habeck (Greens) is calling for a full brake on such lobbying rounds. In an open letter to the traffic light politician, which of the Süddeutsche Zeitung is available, Lobbycontrol, together with parliament watch.de, Mehr Demokratie eV and Transparency Germany, is pushing for a radical restart of the relations between politics and the automotive industry, more lobby transparency and new participation procedures. “End privileged access for the auto industry,” demand the senders urgently.
NGOs warn of “clashing” between politicians and the auto industry
The senders see the out of the car summit in its previous form, as indicated in the coalition agreement, only as a first step. In the paper, the SPD, Greens and FDP announced that they would change the previous summit formats. The aim is to bundle the existing cooperation and dialogue formats in the automotive industry in a strategy platform “Transformation of the automotive industry”, it says there – with the mobility industry, environmental and transport associations, social partners, science, the Bundestag, federal states and municipal umbrella organizations as well as the responsible federal ministries. The aim is both to achieve climate neutrality and “to secure added value as well as jobs and training positions.”
Apparently, however, the NGOs have doubts that in the end there will really be more say for everyone. The four organizations are “concerned that the new federal government will continue to grant the auto industry privileged access,” the paper said. The one-sided exchange with the car lobby leads to “unbalanced decisions and hinders politics oriented towards the common good”, warns Christina Deckwirth, car lobby expert at Lobbycontrol. “Time and again, corporate bosses and their lobbyists have stopped the necessary transformation of the auto industry in order to preserve business models that are harmful to the climate.” The “clubbing” also “massively damaged trust in the federal government,” says Deckwirth.
In their paper, the NGOs call for a more radical rethink. The new strategy platform “must not unilaterally correspond to the interests of the automotive industry, neither in terms of personnel nor thematically,” it continues. “Other interest groups must be adequately represented and not take on a fig leaf function.” In order to prove the change, the ministers would have to support legal regulations on the disclosure of lobby meetings and disclose “contacts with interest representatives” themselves.
Since 2019 there have been regular car summits in the Chancellery
Their ministries and subordinate authorities should also be careful to invite organizations with expertise – not just those with financial strength and lobby offices in Berlin. “Ensure balanced contacts,” demand the NGOs. In order to adequately deal with transport policy challenges and conflicts and to create acceptance for a transformation of the auto industry and the transport sector, extensive participation is necessary.
The grand coalition has come under fire several times in recent years because of its proximity to the auto industry. Since 2019 there have been regular car summits in the Chancellery under the title “Concerted Mobility Action”. In addition to Chancellor Angela Merkel (CDU) and Scheuer, other politicians, managers of the major car companies, the lobbying association VDA, IG Metall and in some cases also supplier companies and works councils from companies in the industry took part. However, environmental, consumer and other transport associations such as bicycle clubs or neutral think tanks for mobility were largely excluded from the influential meetings.