Government Affairs Blog

Friend or Foe? Lobbying in British Democracy

A few days ago a booklet dropped through my letterbox.  The title of the publication by the Hansard Society – www.hansard-society.org.uk - is: Friend or Foe?  Lobbying in British Democracy.  Written by Philip Parvin, the paper explores the issues of lobbying and the future of our political system. 

One of Parvin’s key arguments is that transparency is vitally important when organisations enter into lobbying.   The issue of transparency and the potential for vested interests biasing views is pertinent to this piece.

The Hansard Society paper is sponsored by Ellwood and Atfield – www.ellwoodandatfield.com – who also happen to sponsor the CIPR GAG website that the reader is currently looking at and are a major sponsor of many GAG events.   Everyone on the executive committee of GAG knows Gavin Ellwood and Ben Atfield.  The research agency that was used by Parvin to explore the views of MPs was CommunicateResearch run by Andrew Hawkins.  Andrew is also on the GAG executive and the author has recently commissioned CommunicateResearch to conduct research on behalf of the CIOT. 

If I write a glowing review of the paper I could be accused of promoting something our sponsors support.  What do I do if I believe the paper is incredibly well written and researched?  In order to appear unbiased do I find fault somewhere or not write about the booklet at all? 

If I didn’t review the paper I would be doing all those involved in public affairs a disservice as it is a significant contribution to the debate over lobbying and the activities of those involved in communicating with Government and parliament.  This dilemma illustrates Parvin’s remarks on how lobbyist should behave. 

If you haven’t received a copy of the paper you can order one from the Ellwood and Atfield website (link above).  It is well worth reading and raises some important questions.  And for the record I genuinely have one criticism of the paper.  Parvin argues that the public’s perception is that business has too much sway over politicians while research says that parliamentarians tend not to listen to business and lobbyists representing business are frustrated at the way charities are able to put forward their arguments to the detriment of business. 

The one area Parvin did not explore was party funding.  Whether or not business gains disproportionately from donating to political parties, this is a serious issue that needs to be addressed and may influence decision-making by Government and make it easier for business to gain access. 

Simon Goldie is Head of Communication at The Chartered Institute of Taxation – www.tax.org.uk - and a member of the CIPR GAG committee