#60 Peter Webster: Inside the Social LobbyMap - How Businesses Influence EU Sustainability Policy

Are companies saying one thing about sustainability, but doing something in their political lobbying that is very different?

A new report has just been published today by the sustainable finance pioneer, the ⁠Eiris Foundation⁠, as part of a project called Social LobbyMap. It provides detailed and independent research on business lobbying on Europe's Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive (CSDDD). The report is helping to provide the inside story of what was really going on in what was one of the most high profile political pressures on any piece of EU legislation.

To discuss this topic, ⁠Richard Howitt⁠ welcomes ⁠Peter Webster⁠, Chief Executive of the foundation.

In this episode, you’ll hear more about:

Corporate lobbying and its contribution to watering down the CSDDD
The companies that do the right thing and how can companies contribute to being positive voices in sustainability
If trade associations are doing the “dirty work” on behalf of companies
How this research provides the data and the evidence that investors, civil society and companies themselves can actually use to align on these issues.

... and more!

Listen in and follow us on⁠ ⁠⁠LinkedIn⁠⁠⁠!

"The success of this report is whether lobbying in general better reflects positive approaches to sustainability generally, in this case human rights and labour standards. That can be achieved by having more companies speaking positively, more trade associations evolving their positions and being willing to speak to the diversity of membership and to regulators. Of course, it's not just the companies, the trade associations, or the investors. There's also the civil society organisations who are another important voice on behalf of the public in this debate. They need to have visibility of what companies and what trade associations are saying, so that they can plan their strategies to try and level the playing field."

Peter Webster in Frankly Speaking