Ethanol lobbyist helped far-right MEP write question to Commission on fuels

BRUSSELS ― A far-right MEP’s question to the European Commission was partly drawn up by a lobbyist — which was discovered because no one removed the document's track changes.

When Jana Nagyová, of the group Patriots for Europe, wrote to other members of the European Parliament to ask for their support in signing her question, the attachment revealed the input of Rob Vierhout — a vice-president at ethanol producer Alcogroup.

Transparency campaigners say such behavior risks leading to covert influence from lobbyists without the public's knowledge.

Written inquiries to the EU executive, which commissioners are required to answer, are normally used by MEPs to raise issues that are significant in their home country or among their political allies.

While lawmakers are free to meet with interest groups or individuals and get input from them for their work, the European Parliament's code of conduct requires MEPs to publish any meetings they've had with them — which Nagyová hasn't done.

In her draft question, Nagyová argued that “critical barriers” in EU rules prevented the delivery of sustainable aviation fuels (SAF) to the European market.

A screenshot of the document, shared on social media by Czech journalist Ondřej Houska, shows changes to the original version that were suggested by Vierhout.

“I think this word can be dropped,” he wrote in one.

A version of the document seen by POLITICO still contained some comments from Vierhout, dated March 24, where he suggested that Nagyová's question should include references to specific Commission acts that defines what counts as renewable hydrogen.

Those references were included in her final draft to send to the Commission.

When asked about the situation, Nagyová said in an email to POLITICO that she considered it a “core responsibility” of MEPs to “advocate for the interests of citizens/employees and industry/employers.”

She added: “Whether a citizen or a business representative approaches me with a proposal I deem meaningful and necessary, I address it directly. I find absolutely nothing improper in this.”

Long-time friends

Vierhout initially told POLITICO that he had “never approached Ms. Nagyová in [his] capacity as VP of Alcogroup to submit anything to the European Commission.”

But after being sent a screenshot of the document, he wrote: “I know Ms. Nagyová from many years back when we were working in the same sector.”

He said that when she became an MEP, “knowing that I am working in the renewable energy sector, she asked me if I would like to have a look at this draft question.”

He added: “I have told her that I am not an expert on SAF but was willing to provide comments. She had at the time of asking no knowledge of the fact that I am VP PA for Alcogroup; she asked me as an expert on renewable energy.”

He said he was advising the Czech MEP “as a private person only” and not in his capacity at Alcogroup, which he said has no commercial stake in sustainable aviation fuels, nor is it planning to.

The case underscored the problems of lawmakers getting lobbyists to give input on questions without acknowledging it, said Nick Aiossa, director at Transparency International EU.

“Given the MEP in question has seemingly declared no meetings with this lobbyist, this highlights why the European Parliament must mandate a lobbying footprint for all legislative activity, so that European citizens can see who is really shaping the decisions made for them,” he said.

One of Nagyová's political rivals, Martin Schirdewan, co-chair of the Left group, said: "In front of the cameras, the right-wingers act as if they are concerned about the people, and in Parliament, when the cameras are off, they help mega-corporations push through their profit-driven laws."

Parliamentary immunity

Nagyová has only been working as an MEP since 2024 but has already found herself in hot water in Brussels.

In April, she was stripped of her parliamentary immunity over her alleged involvement in an EU subsidy fraud case.

Known as Stork’s Nest, it involved ex-PM Andrej Babiš allegedly obtaining some €2 million in EU subsidies for his Stork’s Nest leisure resort company by concealing his ownership of the business. Babiš denied wrongdoing. 

Nagyovà has been caught up in the case because she allegedly submitted the application for the subsidy. She has denied any criminal activity.

It’s not the first time industry has been caught making changes to documents for MEPs. In 2023, Czech Renew lawmaker Ondřej Kovařík submitted amendments to a vote on the non-CO2 vehicle pollution legislation that had been written by the head of public affairs for the ACEA auto lobby. Kovařík said at the time he did not consult this specific proposal with ACEA.

And in 2014, Louis Michel, a Belgian liberal MEP, was found to have violated the Parliament’s code of conduct after his office proposed more than 200 amendments to EU data-protection legislation that turned out to have been produced by industry representatives.

Michel blamed the incident on an assistant.

Ketrin Jochecová contributed to this report.