The fault of “the Thalys effect”! When you try to understand why, in Brussels, French companies drag the reputation of being little sharp in European affairs, the fingers invariably point to the high -speed train which links Paris to Belgium. “If you are a senior executive that lives at 1:20 am community institutions, you have no desire to leave Paris to settle in a provincial city,” said a European lobbyist in sight. At the risk of missing the essentials. “With going back and forth during the day, you will only have Pravda, because in Brussels, the information is obtained in conviviality, in the evening around a beer,” admits Fabrice Le Saché, vice-president from Europe to MEDEF.
By opening the “Maison des Entreprises de France” on February 17, the employers’ organization intends to fight against clichés and show that with its members, it has seized the importance of having a storefront in the European district in order to anchor more. Air Liquide, L’Oréal or the French Federation of Banks are among those which bring together their forces in this space of 1,000 square meters, which will also offer flexible offices to those who envisage a lighter presence. “This is the right time because Europe plays its economic future against the United States and China, argues Fabrice Le Saché. Crucial decisions on the simplification of legislation or investments will arrive, we must weigh on arbitrations “. Companies fear seeing the influence of France suffer from its political and budgetary difficulties of the moment, while the 81 EEM hexagonal are already less than others on the laws, for lack, for half of them, Belong to the powerful proeuropian political families.
The French “bad” compared to the Germans
“Today, everything is negotiated in Brussels, relying only on representatives of France, it is a gateway too close, confirms Jean Comte, journalist and author of the book At the heart of European lobbying. To influence the agenda, it is necessary to speak directly to the multiple services of the Commission, to elected officials of all nationalities or to the representations of the different countries “. The ideal is to be able to make yourself known on a theme even before the presentation of a bill. Endowed with only 36,000 civil servants (against 130,000 just for the French Ministry of Economy and Finance!), The Commission is often demanding of expertise – on subjects that can Go from the authorization of glyphosate to sharp financial regulations, including toy standards. “The good European lobbyist knows how to present himself as a source of information and not only as the representative of special interests”, describes Jean Comte again.
From this point of view, despite progress in recent years, French economic actors still have room for improvement, especially in comparison with their German counterparts. “I often tell them that they are bad, confides the MEP MODEM Marie-Pierre Vedrenne, who works on economic subjects. For example, on the simplification legislation that the commission is preparing, I received a note from German employers But I myself had to contact the MEDEF “. It must be said that historically, the Germans have invested the capital of Europe much more. Accustomed to a decentralized federal system, they more easily move from one level of power to another. “Public and private work hand in hand: the Länder have solid representations in Brussels and their links are close with their regional industrial champions”, notes a French lobbyist.
Even if CAC 40 companies have opened offices in Brussels over the past 15 years, the official figures for the transparency register, on which lobbyists and companies must register their activities, remain eloquent. In 2023, the Bundesverband der Deutschen Industrie, the German Federation, said nearly 3.5 million euros in lobby activities in Brussels, against less than a million euros for MEDEF. Another example, in the automobile, Stellantis displays less than 500,000 euros in this area, when the Volkswagen group declares more than 2.5 million euros.
“In France, you believe that coming with the CEO …”
“In France, you believe that coming with the CEO is enough to open doors, but what makes the real difference is the substantive work and the mastery of all the technical details”, points out a European of the North. “Brussels is a lot of humility and complexity, admits the Mister Europe of Medef, it does not fit into French political habits and big blows”. Faced with specialized diplomats, civil servants of the Commission General Directorate or sharp parliamentary assistants on their deputy’s reports, it is better to stink and not to bet too much on his only oratory talent.
All the same, the French keep beautiful strings to their bow. “And first of all, your gastronomy and long informal lunches!” Has a Swedish lobbyist. Then, the young generation speaks English well and settles in Brussels, whose quality of life convinces those who try the jump. Finally and above all, faced with a Germany whose economic choices have proven to be not very judicious in recent years, the meaning of history has been blowing in the hexagonal sense: strategic autonomy, European preference, or even rehabilitation of nuclear energy, the wind Turn in favor of ideas of economic sovereignty pushed by Paris. “This is a comparative advantage”, rejoices Fabrice Le Saché. And a weight argument to highlight between two technical presentations!
.