by Tamasin Cave Lobbying editor, SpinProfiles Lobby Watch, British Medical Journal, 10 March 2010, http://bit.ly/cY8AZN

When David Cameron held an hour long meeting with the campaign group Nurses for Reform (NFR) before Christmas to discuss "NFR’s ideas on the future of health policy,"[1] few could have predicted the ensuing furore.

The Tory leader woke on New Year’s Day to a press report of the meeting headlined "Cam’s plan to pan NHS,"[2] forcing him to restate his "wholehearted commitment" to free health care and to reassure the public that the NHS will be safe in Conservative hands.[3] [4]

NFR is a "growing pan-European network of nurses" that campaigns for "consumer-led reform" of the healthcare system in Britain and abroad that is based on "competition" rather than "bland egalitarianism."[5] It has labelled the NHS "a Stalinist, nationalised abhorrence" and given its seal of approval to a theory that the history behind the NHS and the eugenics movement have common elements.[6] [7]

http://www.bmj.com/cgi/content/full/bmj.c484?ijkey=1anjS6jf2p2ikRP&keytype=ref

¹ Department of Geography and Sociology, University of Strathclyde, Glasgow G1 1XN, ² University of California, Los Angeles

The Social Issues Research Centre (SIRC) is an "independent, non-profit organisation"¹ that says it carries out "balanced, calm and thoughtful"² research on lifestyle issues such as drinking, diet, and pharmaceuticals. However, it may be perceived that the company acts more like a public relations agency for the corporations that fund its activities. These include Diageo, Flora, Coca-Cola, GlaxoSmithKline, and Roche, among others.³ Although SIRC does publish this partial list of funders, it is not immediately apparent which company has sponsored which study. And in some instances this information is not included in media reports.⁴

SIRC has produced guidelines for journalists on the reporting of science and health issues,⁵ but the guidelines include little on transparency or avoiding conflicts of interest.⁶ SIRC is not always transparent about its own funding. For example, it was commissioned by HRT Aware to produce a report that concluded that "well-informed women" taking hormone replacement therapy are "benefiting" and feeling happier, healthier, and sexier.⁷ The research received widespread coverage in the broadsheet, tabloid, and broadcast media.⁸ Neither the press nor SIRC mentioned that HRT Aware was funded by drug companies, including Janssen-Cilag, Wyeth, Solvay, Servier, Organon, and Novo Nordisk.⁹ SIRC mentioned, on the back cover of the report, only that HRT Aware was "industry supported."⁷

Sunday, 28 February 2010

Revealed in today’s Sunday Times are the ex-MPs working as commercial lobbyists who still have privileged access to Parliament.

The newspaper conservatively counts 25 ex-MPs who are currently working for lobbying firms, from a list of 200 former Members that hold House of Commons passes.

Thanks to a secret ruling by the former speaker, Michael Martin, most ex-MPs can now claim a parliamentary pass for life. This allows them access to Common’s facilities and the politicians who work there. That so many are working as lobbyists should come as no surprise: if a business wants to influence politics, who better to hire than an ex-MP who can work the tea rooms of Westminster on your behalf.

Although Commons rules forbid former MPs from using the pass to further their lobbying career, there are no safeguards to stop them from doing so.

With an unprecedented number of MPs standing down or set to lose their seats at the election, the amount of ex-MPs looking for lucrative lobbying work is likely to rise. Already Andrew MacKay MP – a former aide to Cameron – has signed up to work for lobbying giant Burson-Marsteller.

The list of names is the result of a two-year freedom of information battle between SpinWatch and the House of Commons. In the time it took the authorities to release the names, five of the ex-MPs on the list have died. Of the 200 names, over half are former Conservative Members.  

Download the complete list of ex-MPs with a parliamentary pass.

Lobbying: "It is the next big scandal waiting to happen... an issue that exposes the far-too-cosy relationship between politics, government, business and money... 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…"

So said David Cameron this week. But just how accurate is his depiction of the lobbying industry at work?

Today, Spinwatch publishes An Inside Job – a snapshot of political schmoozing by the City. The report looks at recent lobbying by the financial services industry and its many champions – from the banks themselves and their trade associations, to the lobbyists-for-hire, the City of London Corporation and the capital's Mayor, Boris Johnson. And it asks why – despite the UK government decrying the “fundamental unfairness of the rescue” of the banks – it shows no appetite for reform of the City to pre-empt another banking crisis.

An Inside Job reveals a well oiled revolving door between the finance industry, the government and its regulators, and opens a door onto the cosy social world they inhabit together (which includes many breakfasts, lunches and dinners).

9 February 2010

Ephraim Hardcastle writes in today's Daily Mail on Cameron's proposed clampdown on political lobbying firms: "Does he mean outfits like Huntsworth," Hardcastle asks, "which describes itself as 'a world class communications group with public relations as its core'? Its chief executive is Lord Chadlington, aka Peter Gummer, 67, president of Cameron's constituency party. He helped bankroll Dave's leadership campaign."

The Huntsworth Group has a number of lobbying firms under its wing including Grayling, Citigate Dewe Rogerson and Quiller Consultants. The first two companies come clean about who they are being paid to lobby for – they declare their clients under the current system of self-regulation; Quiller does not, in fact it seems to pride itself on keeping quiet: "We understand the importance of discretion, and of being able to give independent advice from a position of trust," it says.

Not quite up to the standards set by David Cameron, who just yesterday said: "I believe that secret corporate lobbying, like the expenses scandal, goes to the heart of why people are so fed up with politics... It is the next big scandal waiting to happen".

Tamasin Cave, 8 February 2010

David Cameron admitted today that “secret corporate lobbying, like the expenses scandal, goes to the heart of why people are so fed up with politics.”



The Conservative Party must now pledge to support the introduction of a statutory register of lobbyists, as recommended by the influential Public Administration Select Committee (PASC), chaired by Tony Wright MP.

In a speech this morning, Cameron said of lobbying: “It’s an issue that crosses party lines and has tainted our politics for too long...an issue that exposes the far-too-cosy relationship between politics, government, business and money. I’m talking about lobbying – and we all know how it works."

5 February 2010

Now we know the extent to which MPs are facilitating access to the House of Commons facilities for commercial lobbyists, thanks to information from the Commons banqueting office being made public.

The rules state that dining rooms must be ‘sponsored’ by an MP on behalf of an outside interest, with the MP in attendance, although David Cameron has already been pulled up on this.

Among those consultant lobbying firms out to impress their clients – almost treating the Commons as a private dinning room - are Edelman, which hosted seven functions in 18 months; Lexington Communications – two lunches, a tea and a dinner in 2005-06; and Political Intelligence, which notched up eleven dinners and receptions in just two years. Three of these were hosted by former Lib Dem MP Richard Allan, who stood down in 2005 before becoming a lobbyist for Political Intelligence’s one-time client, Cisco.

"We can’t go on like this. I believe it’s time we shone the light of transparency on lobbying in our country and forced our politics to come clean about who is buying power and influence." David Cameron, Feb 2010.

If you agree with Dave on this, vote now for new rules to force lobbyists to operate in the open.

Power2010 is a campaign where you get to push for political reform. Transparency rules for lobbyists is just one idea out of a long list of proposed reforms – the top 5 most popular ideas, as voted for by you, will become part of a major campaign in the run up to the general election. If lobbying transparency makes it into the top 5, there’s a strong chance that the proposal will become government policy.

Vote now for new rules to open up lobbying to public scrutiny – and let’s see who the government is really listening to.

When it comes to alcohol awareness, is the government under the influence of the drinks industry?

The stated aim of the Portman Group is to promote social responsibility in the alcohol industry, with a particular focus on responsible marketing. Established in 1989, it claims to "show leadership on best practice in the area of alcohol responsibility" and to "foster a balanced understanding of alcohol-related issues."^{1 2}

Its former chief executive, Jean Coussins, rejected any suggestion that the group "represent[s] the industry" or acts as a "trade association or lobby group."³ However, the evidence of its involvement in research and policy consultations indicates that it is not independent of the industry and that it lobbies on behalf of the industry.