The European Parliament and European Commission already blacklisted Huawei lobbyists last week, shutting off their access to EU premises, and commissioner cabinets and officials working at the EU executive’s directorates general were instructed “to immediately suspend contacts and meetings” with Huawei “until further notice.”
It’s a sign of how Huawei — which is among the top spenders of lobbying money in Brussels according to the EU’s transparency register — is suffering major blows after Belgian police raided its main lobbying office in Brussels as part of a larger investigation into corruption, criminal organization and money laundering at the European Parliament.
DigitalEurope is one of Brussels’ most powerful technology lobbying voices. It gathers tech companies and national industry associations to influence European Union decision making.
The lobby group said in a statement it was aware of the “serious allegations” against Huawei. “We take ethical business conduct and compliance with the law very seriously. As a precautionary measure, Huawei’s membership has been suspended until further notice,” the statement read.
BusinessEurope is a lobbying heavyweight in Brussels, with a membership composed of national trade associations and representing the interests of industrial heavyweights across all sectors. It has a group of “partner companies” that includes the world’s largest companies. The Internet Archive search tool showed Huawei was still listed as a partner on March 1 but had been removed by March 18, days after the corruption scandal broke.
Huawei is also a member of, or has contributed to, several other lobby groups, trade associations and think tanks, according to the EU’s transparency register that lists declarations from organizations looking to lobby the EU’s work.
