Fossil fuel lobbyists out of COP29:the European appeal to Wopke Hoekstra

112 organizations have asked Wopke Hoekstra, the next EU climate commissioner, not to bring fossil lobbyists to Cop29 in Baku.

• Wopke Hoekstra, the European climate commissioner designate, has come under criticism for his links to the fossil fuel industry.
• 112 civil society organizations asked Hoekstra not to bring fossil lobbyists to the next Cop, which starts on November 11 in Baku.
• The same criticism was also posed to him in the European Parliament.Hoekstra offered no reassurances.

While the European Commissioner designated for Climate Policies, Wopke Hoekstra, appeared before the European Parliament to confirm its line of action for the next five years, and to answer questions from MEPs, over one hundred civil society organizations they made an appeal so that Hoekstra do not bring representatives of the fossil industry at COP29, the UN climate conference, as part of the European delegation.

At last year's COP there were 130 fossil delegates

The presence of fossil fuel lobbyists in the European Union delegation a Cop29 in fact it raises concerns regarding the credibility of climate policies of the EU and to Hoekstra himself, yes subject of controversy in the past and current head of the delegation.Last year, at the COP28 climate negotiations, the EU and its member states they brought over 130 representatives of the fossil industry, according to campaign data Kick big polluters out.Among these, Hoekstra's team welcomed senior executives from companies such as Eni, BP and the head of ExxonMobil's lobbyists in Brussels.Additionally, at least 115 lobbyists have participated in the past 20 years Shell at the United Nations negotiations:the Anglo-Dutch company is one of the most represented fossil industries during the COP and Hoekstra himself worked for two years in the ranks of Shell.

This year, during climate talks in Baku, activists are calling for a clear commitment for a rapid, fair, complete and financed elimination of fossil fuels.However, there is a well-founded fear that oil and gas officials will seek to thwart such efforts to protect their own economic interests.

In the letter addressed to the commissioner, the 112 organizations signatories expressed concerns about the preponderance of the fossil lobbies in debates on combating global warming, and called for Hoekstra to support measures that protect decision-making processes from the influence of this sector, as is the case for the tobacco industry in health regulation.

“Bringing fossil fuel lobbyists to Cop29 is like inviting the tobacco industry to a public health conference.It's a obvious conflict of interest which undermines the integrity of climate discussions.There is no room for polluters in climate talks, which is why we need a protective barrier, like there is for tobacco,” said Nathan Stewart, coordinator of the Fossil free politics campaign.

Hoekstra did not reassure MEPs

On 7 November, Commissioner Hoekstra appeared before the European Parliament to answer questions from MEPs on his suitability to maintain the position for the next five years.A crucial opportunity to obtain concrete commitments from the Dutch politician to protect the climate policies of the EU and the UN from the excessive influence of fossil industries.

Yet, Hoekstra failed to reassure that he will keep oil and gas lobbyists away from climate policy, when he answered questions from MEPs, seeking approval to resume his role as European Climate Commissioner.

This answer echoes that of last year, when, in response to a complaint from Parliament about the presence of oil and gas lobbyists in the EU delegation to COP 28, Hoekstra said that they were there to participate in panels during the negotiations, which appears untrue in more than one case, as documented by the journalists of DeSmog.

However, inviting fossil fuel delegates to speak during negotiations offers them ample lobbying opportunities:both during events, speaking together with senior EU officials, and by accessing areas reserved for governments only thanks to their presence in a government delegation. Fossil Free Politics questioned the reasons listed by the European Commission to justify the invitation of the lobbyists:“It is clear that oil and gas lobbyists' only interest in climate policy is deny, delay, shift blame and continue to maximize their profits at the expense of ordinary people, who pay skyrocketing energy bills and suffer in the climate crisis,” is Nathan Stewart's conclusion.