The EU Commission is defending itself against allegations: no secret NGO deals!

The EU Commission is defending itself against allegations: no secret NGO deals!

Brüssel, Belgien - The European Commission is currently criticized after reports on secret deals with environmental guiding government organizations (NGOs) have appeared. Media reports published by the "Welt am Sonntag" claim that the EU Commission has financed environmental associations in order to carry out campaigns against German companies. A spokesman for the commission rejected these allegations and emphasized that there were no secret contracts between the Commission and NGOs. In addition, all information about EU funds and its recipients on the website of the financial transparency system are open to the public. This reports Exxpress .

The allegations against the EU Commission are not new. In February, similar topics were already being discussed intensively in the European Parliament. In particular, there are fears that some NGOs, such as the Clientearth organization, were financed for campaigns and lawsuits against companies. A secret contract of 2022 between the EU Commission and Clientearth, which guarantees the NGO a remuneration of 350,000 euros for the support for the coal phase-out, is the focus of the criticism. This is confirmed by Tagesschau

transparency and control

The European Court of Auditors has also expressed concerns, especially with regard to the allocation of EU funds to NGOs. In a report published on April 8, 2025, the lack of transparency of financing activities is criticized. The Commission did not correctly disclose lobby activities, and there is no control over whether the funded NGOs are paying attention to the EU values. Between 2021 and 2023, over 12,000 NGOs received a total of 7.4 billion euros in the EU, with 4.8 billion euros come from the EU Commission. These figures illustrate the dimension of financial support, which is shown by European Newsroom

In addition, according to the European Parliament, some NGOs have used EU grants for radical projects. Monika Hohlmeier, a CSU European European Corpa Parliamentarian, has expressed the clear request that EU funds must not be used to undermine the rule of law. The EU Commission replied that it has published new guidelines for the awarding of financial aid: In the future, funding should no longer be made for activities that could be understood as targeted lobbying.

futuristic changes and demands

The discussion about the transparency of NGO financing is further fueled by demands for stricter regulations. EU MP Alexander Bernhuber and others, such as Lena Schilling from the Greens, demand clear criteria for the allocation of NGO contracts and maximum transparency for industrial and agricultural lobbies. Roman Haider from the FPÖ criticizes the handling of public funds on both NGOs and other lobby groups.

The EU Commission continues to assure that it would like to promote transparency. However, it remains to be seen which measures are ultimately implemented in order to strengthen trust in the EU's financing practices and to dispel concern about potential abuse.