1 Introduction
1. On 8 February 2010, when he was still the
Leader of the Opposition, David Cameron stated that lobbying would
be the next big political scandal:
I'm talking about lobbying—and we all know
how it works. The lunches, the hospitality, the quiet word in
your ear, the ex-ministers and ex-advisors for hire, helping big
business find the right way to get its way. In this party, we
believe in competition, not cronyism. We believe in market economics,
not crony capitalism. So we must be the party that sorts all this
out.[1]
LOBBYING: ACCESS AND INFLUENCE IN
WHITEHALL
2. David Cameron's remarks followed a critical
report on the lobbying industry: Lobbying: Access and Influence
in Whitehall, published by the Public Administration Select
Committee in January 2009. The report concluded that the current
system of self-regulation by three different lobbying industry
bodies, the Association of Professional Political Consultants,
the Public Relations Consultants Association, and the Chartered
Institute of Public Relations, allowed lobbyists to "pick
and choose the rules that apply to them in a way that is incompatible
with effective self regulation".[2]
3. The report's main recommendations were to:
- establish a single umbrella organisation with
both corporate and individual membership, in order to be able
to cover all those who are involved in lobbying as a substantial
part of their work.
- create a mandatory register of lobbying activity,
covering all those outside the public sector involved in accessing
and influencing public sector decision makers, which should be
managed and enforced by a body independent of both Government
and lobbyists.
4. The then Government rejected the Public Administration
Select Committee's recommendation for a statutory register of
lobbyists, stating that "the Government believes that effective
voluntary self-regulation must be the preferred approach".
The Government response added that the issue of lobbying would
be kept under review "to ensure that progress is made in
developing an effective system of voluntary self-regulation".[3]
5. The Coalition's Programme for Government,
published in May 2010, contained a commitment to "regulate
lobbying through introducing a statutory register of lobbyists
and ensuring greater transparency".[4]
6. In response to the Public Administration Select
Committee report, the industry's three self-regulatory bodies
set up the UK Public Affairs Council in July 2010. The aim of
the Council was to "to offer a system of voluntary regulation
to ensure that all those involved in lobbying institutions of
government can be governed by a clear set of principles, underpinned
by enforceable Codes of Conduct". This involved a voluntary
register of lobbyists, first published in March 2011, but not
subsequently kept fully up to date. Following the procurement
of new IT systems the Council's voluntary register of lobbyists
was finally re-launched in February 2012.
7. On 9 December 2011 the Public Relations Consultants
Association withdrew from the Council, stating that self-regulation
had not been successful, and called on the Government quickly
to introduce a statutory register "held by an independent
body, to run in parallel with the Codes of Conduct that exist
already within the industry".[5]
THE COMMITTEE'S INQUIRY
8. On 20 January 2012, the Government published
its proposals for Introducing a Statutory Register of Lobbyists,
for consultation. The consultation paper proposes that only third
party lobbyists would be required to be on a statutory register;
those working in-house would be exempt. Third party lobbyists
would be required to sign up to and update a statutory register
on a quarterly basis, giving details of the:
- registered address of the company and company
number;
- names of the employees engaged in lobbying;
- whether those employees are former Ministers
or Senior Civil Servants;
- client lists.
The Government stated that registration "should
be no more burdensome than filling out an online form".[6]
The Government proposes to make the register publicly searchable,
but does not plan to include data on specific meetings between
lobbyists and Ministers, arguing that these are already published
on Departmental websites. The Government proposes that the register
should be "managed and enforced by a body which is independent
of the lobbying industry, and of Government,"[7]
and be self-funded by the lobbying industry.
9. One of the key issues for consultation was
the definition of a lobbyist. The consultation paper defines lobbyists
as "those who undertake lobbying activities on behalf of
a third party client or whose employees conduct lobbying activities
on behalf of a third party client".[8]
There is discussion of the usefulness of the Government's definition
of a lobbyist in chapter 3. The consultation paper also asks whether
in-house lobbyists, be it those in commercial, trade union or
charitable organisations, should also be required to register.
We welcome the fact that these proposals have been published for
parliamentary scrutiny, as well as for wider consultation.
10. We launched our inquiry into the Government's
proposals for a statutory register on the same day that the consultation
paper was published. Our witnesses have included lobbyists, representatives
from the lobbying self-regulatory bodies, academic experts, and
the Government. We have also sought, and received, evidence from
representatives of some of those groups who might be particularly
affected by the proposals if the Government's definition of lobbying
was broadened, including transparency campaign groups, charities,
trade unions, and lawyers. We are grateful as ever to all those
who contributed to our inquiry.
11. This report looks first at the nature of
the problem. This is followed by a detailed discussion of the
Government's proposals and whether they will solve the problem
that "when Ministers meet lobbying firms it is not transparent
on whose behalf they are lobbying".[9]
We also consider whether the Government's proposals will help
to improve transparency about lobbying and help rebuild public
trust in politics. Next we consider some other options for a statutory
register. Finally we look at other measures to improve transparency
around who is lobbying whom.
12. As the Public Administration Committee is
currently conducting an inquiry into the Business Appointment
Rules, which will cover the Advisory Committee on Business
Appointments (ACoBA) and the 'revolving door' between the civil
service and the private sector we will not consider this issue
within our report. However, we urge Government to take a joined
up approach to lobbying regulations, and urge it to consider any
changes to ACoBA alongside potential lobbying regulations.
1 Rebuilding trust in politics, 8 February 2010,
Error! Bookmark not defined. Back
2
Public Administration Committee, First Report of Session 2008-09,
Lobbying: Access and Influence in Whitehall, HC 36, para
57 Back
3
Publication Administration Committee, Eighth Special Report of
Session 2008-09, Lobbying: Access and influence in Whitehall:
Government Response to the Committee's First Report of Session
2008-09, HC1058, para 5 Back
4
HM Government, The Coalition: our programme for Government,
May 2010, p21 Back
5
E-mail received by Elizabeth France, Chairman of UKPAC, from Francis
Ingham, PRCA, 9 December 2011, Error! Bookmark not defined. Back
6
HM Government, Introducing a Statutory Register of Lobbyists,
January 2012, p10 Back
7
HM Government, Introducing a Statutory Register of Lobbyists,
January 2012, p17 Back
8
HM Government, Introducing a Statutory Register of Lobbyists,
January 2012, p11 Back
9
HM Government, Introducing a Statutory Register of Lobbyists,
January 2012, p9 Back
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