Under the European Sustainability Reporting Standards, companies must provide information on the activities and commitments related to exerting their political influence, including lobbying activities related to their material impacts, risks, and opportunities.

This metric combines the expenses disclosed for indirect political contributions and lobbying activities, as defined by EFRAG in the Disclosure requirements G1-5 and Defined Terms. 

Indirect political contributions: 

AR 10, G1-5. ‘Indirect political contribution’ refers to those political contributions made through an intermediary organisation such as a lobbyist or charity, or support given to an organisation such as a think tank or trade association linked to or supporting particular political parties or causes. 

Lobbying activities, as defined in the Defined Terms.

Activities carried out with the objective of influencing the formulation or implementation of policy or legislation, or the decision-making processes of governments, governmental institutions, regulators, European Union institutions, bodies, offices and agencies or standard setters. Such activities include (non-exhaustive list):

1. organising or participating in meetings, conferences, events;
2. contributing to/participating in public consultations, hearings or other similar initiatives;
3. organising communication campaigns, platforms, networks, grassroots initiatives;
4. preparing/commissioning policy and position papers, opinion polls, surveys, open letters, research work as per the activities covered by transparency register rules.