New Scandal in Brussels: Secret Contracts and Bought NGOs

Frans Timmermans, a frequent staunch critic of Hungary, is at the center of a shocking exposé in the Dutch press.

Frans Timmermans, former Executive Vice President of the European Commission for the European Green Deal (Photo: Europress/AFP)

• The European Commission funded so-called civil society organizations through secret contracts to advocate for positions favorable to the Commission during debates on various proposals.
• The key figure in the case was Frans Timmermans, who has consistently attacked Hungary. 
• These taxpayer-funded NGOs were tasked with convincing as many MEPs and member states as possible to support the Commission’s stance, particularly on environmental policies.
• Rather than serving their original purpose of representing different civil societal groups, these organizations operated as paid lobbyists and activists for the European Commission—without transparency.
• This raises the question of whether civil organizations that regularly criticize the Hungarian government might also be involved in similar activities.

Frans Timmermans constantly criticized Hungary in Brussels (Photo: Europress/AFP)
 

A new scandal has erupted in Brussels—this time, instead of buying politicians, bureaucrats bought activist groups - masquerading as civil organizations - using EU taxpayers' money to pressure the European Parliament and national governments.

The Dutch newspaper De Telegraaf recently reported on secret contracts between the European Commission and green organizations to allegedly conduct hidden lobbying efforts. According to the paper,

The Brussels-commissioned and EU funded lobbying NGOs were tasked with persuading MEPs and member states to support the Commission’s ambitious Green Deal initiatives.

In other words, the so-called “green lobby”—which was presented as representing European civil society—was in fact orchestrated by Brussels out of EU funds.

How Brussels controlled the green lobby

One such "civil society" group was the European Environmental Bureau (EEB), an umbrella organization for green groups. The EEB was explicitly instructed to provide at least 16 examples of how its lobbying influenced the European Parliament to tighten environmental legislation.

Documents reviewed by De Telegraaf revealed that the EEB was also tasked with pushing the controversial nature restoration law championed by Frans Timmermans, a former EU Commissioner.

This means that the leftist-liberal politician—who even ran for the post of Commission President—used EU taxpayers' money to fund green lobbying that served his own political agenda.

The Bought Green Lobby’s Impact on Agriculture

Additionally, €700,000 in funding was allocated to steer agricultural policy discussions toward more environmentally friendly approaches.

So Brussels prioritized its own policy goals over the livelihoods of European— including Hungarian—farmers, using paid activist groups to push its agenda.

Recently, the leader of Hungary’s Tisza Party argued that "the EU, including Hungary, should promote organic, intensive, high-value-added agriculture over the current extensive grain production (sic). The MEP called for actively supporting organic farming while sidelining grain producers, which could have serious consequences for European farmers.

Brussels uses the same tactics against Hungary

This same pattern is also evident in Hungary, where Brussels funds certain organizations with EU money to promote the political objectives of unelected EU bureaucrats.

In the coming days, we will reveal how Brussels uses paid, fake civil society groups in its attacks on Hungary.