Governments and other public authorities set the rules within which, as individuals, corporations and other organizations, we pursue our objectives. In Europe, the European Union (EU) is now a major player in the definition of these rules. The European Commission, European Parliament, and Council of Ministers are the source of legislation with far-reaching impact on the lives of European citizens and the behaviour of businesses not only in Europe, but throughout global markets.

The profession of public affairs (or government affairs as it is known in some jurisdictions, and European affairs as it is referred to in Brussels) consulting has developed in response to the need for various interests to be ever more professional and systematic in how they interact with these rule-making processes. The need for timely information, for well-judged analysis, for experienced resources available on demand, has long been recognized by large international corporations. But this recognition has now spread to many other organizations, large and not so large.

The public affairs consultant has a well-established role in most western economies, though in some EU member states the role is quite marginal. Attitudes to dealing with the authorities can still be rather traditional - if your chairman went to school with the minister, or plays golf at the same club, why should you have to worry about the minister's officials? The muddled approach in much of Europe to the financing of political parties can also lead to the pursuit of other non-transparent routes to influence. Old-fashioned corruption, as old as political power itself, has certainly not yet disappeared from our continent.

In this environment the public affairs profession has a dual role: a role within a democratic society to supply ethical channels for seeking to influence political outcomes (which imposes requirements, such as strict codes of conduct, on how we operate); and a role in adding value for the interest represented, in the case of a business contributing to the realization of the company objectives (removing a threat, securing an opportunity).

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