European Institute of Public Relations students 3 day visit to Brussels (December 2015) 
As part of the course programmes for both the European Institute of Public Relations' Post Grad Diploma in European Public Affairs and Diploma in European Studies students are required to make a three day site visit to Brussels. The stay combines a series of lectures and visits to the European Commission, European Council and European Parliament. During the visit on 2nd December 2015 to the offices of the European Council, President Tusk met with the President of Colombia when the EU signed a short-stay visa waiver agreement with Colombia. The EU’s relations with Colombia are built on political dialogue, trade, and development cooperation, and cover a wide range of bilateral, regional and multilateral issues, whilst also helping to address the legacies of its internal armed conflict.

In March 2015, the Regulation of Lobbying Act 2015 was signed into law by the President of Ireland. The Act is designed to provide information to the public about: who is lobbying, on whose behalf lobbying is being carried out, the issues involved in the lobbying, the intended result of the lobbying and who is being lobbied. The Public Relations Institute of Ireland (PRII) had introduced a Code of Ethics in 2003 but as a response to the 2015 Act introduced its updated Code of Professional Practice for Public Affairs & Lobbying at its AGM in January 2016.  

The code directs PRII members to the acceptable and appropriate standards of behaviour in public affairs activity. It reflects the requirement of the Regulation of Lobbying Act and complements the obligations of public officials under the Ethics in Public Office Acts, Local Government Acts, Electoral Acts and standard terms of employment and other rules which also govern the activities of such officials. 

For the purposes of this Code of Professional Practice, public affairs practice is defined as: All activity associated with representing the interests of a client or employer in relation to any matter of public policy, including:  the provision of professional advice to clients/employers on matters relevant to public policy or law; or procurement, selection, nomination or appointment for public contract or office;

• lawful and ethical actions intended to promote a change of public policy, law or the expenditure of public funds; and
• the making of representations, or the advocacy of a point of view, to any persons or institutions, including the provision of information and advice.