When the parliamentary politicians several times a year meetings up to events and totally free drink gin, wine, bubbles and snaps on the spiritusbranchens bill, it's not about policy, but about socialising.
It assures the chairman of the board of VSOD (Wine and Spirits Organisation in Denmark, red.), Carsten Suhrke, on.
- There is no political agenda, and it is not a political forum, sounds it.
See also: Producers pay: Sprutklub in the Danish Parliament
On the VSOD's website says otherwise about the events:
the merchants ' guild should also provide the framework for tastings, presentations from experts in addition to social interaction between the members of the folketing across party lines. In addition, the merchants ' guild also provide the members of the folketing a unique insight into what is happening, latest trends, as well as the challenges facing the industry.
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- In the writing itself, that you will have a forum where you can discuss the challenges facing the industry?
- Yes, challenges and trends, but not the policy as such. It is not a political meeting, where we take a rundbords-discussion on taxes and such. It is a social forum, where we have the opportunity to learn the legislators to know, says the chairman of the board, which at the same time can tell you that there wont be meeting between 12 and 25 mps up, when they organise gin, schnapps or wine-events - the meeting in the last week, as the Extra Magazine has described today, was a popular one of its kind.
- What will get out of sponsoring the events?
- We think we have some good stories for the benefit of Denmark, which we would like to draw attention. A lot is happening in our industry, where virtually everything in the past was driven by foreign manufacturers and foreign products, now have many products and manufacturers to the benefit of Danish jobs and Danish imports.
It is Mads Fuglede (V) who is the chairman of the Parliamentary Wine and spiritussocietet, and thus he who sends out invitations to mps, when there are events in the association, says the chairman of the board in the VSOD, Carsten Suhrke. Photo: Ritzau Scanpix.
- It is clear that if we can learn some politicians to know and then get meetings with them, where we can air our opinions on political matters, that gives us something. And it is all other things being equal, easier, if you have met the person before, says Carsten Suhrke, who in addition to being chairman of the board in the VSOD is the director of the French spiritusproducent Pernod Ricard.
Photo: VSOD.
According to Jesper Olsen, who is vice-president of the anti-corruption organization Transparency International, it is, however, clear-cut, to brancheforeningens motive for the events are political.
– The invite after all, not the politicians, because they are a fantastic company. They invite them, because the politicians representing the legislative power, as they get exclusive access to. Wine and spiritusbranchen could just as well tell about their problems with f.ex. charges over a sparkling water at a politician's office, he says.
From the snaps to the gin:
the Parliamentary Wine and Spiritussocietet was in the following documents from the VSOD founded in 2017. and had the first event in 2018. Here are some of the themes:
20. march 2018: Gin & Bubbles
8. may 2018: Wine producers give their take on this summer's drink.
6. november 2018: the Year's hot wine punch.
30. January 2019: 's reception in the bubbles character.
4. september: Among other things, the Danish champagne.
the Next event in the club is 5. november.
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But Carsten Suhrke, chairman of the board in the VSOD, do not believe that that can be questioned, on the lobby-the events will go straight to or over the limit.
- Have you thought that the politicians could get morally crushed by it here?
- No, we have not, for I do not think there is anything problematic about this case. We have found inspiration in the Danish parliament Øllaug, which is also a social activity, as ølbranchen finance.
- I have not the shadow of a bad conscience over it. It is also no different than when politicians take on the vip tour at f.ex. a wind turbine manufacturer.
