“This is not a lobbying scandal – it is a purely political scandal”: PRCA responds to cash for questions row
The Public Relations Consultants Association (PRCA) has commented on the Sunday Times expose that saw three Lords offered work by undercover journalists posing as lobbyists.
The Drum reported this morning that lobbyists are now facing calls to embrace a new regime of registration by deputy prime minister Nick Clegg after a host of peers were snared by Panorama and the Sunday Times attempting to sell access to parliament and debating time to fake businesses.
However, Francis Ingham, PRCA director general, said: “This is still not a lobbying scandal - it is a purely political scandal. Just with the apparent revelations about Patrick Mercer on Friday, there wasn’t a lobbyist in sight in The Sunday Times expose of the three Lords.
“It is important to note that a number of our lobbying agency members alerted us to the fact that they were contacted by the fictitious South Korean solar power firm at the time that the sting was taking place, but significantly they declined to work with the firm. Once again, it appears that the only people to be drawn into this scandal are politicians - not lobbyists.”
He continued: “If the government has now finally decided to introduce a statutory register of lobbyists, it must not be a smokescreen to cover the improper behaviour of politicians. What we really need to see are politicians who do not bend and break their own rules. In particular, we need to see a tightening of the rules that apply to the setting up of APPGs and how they operate.”
Meanwhile, Emily Wallace, PRCA Public Affairs Group chairman, added: “If the government is serious about delivering greater transparency, then it needs to make sure that any bill to introduce a statutory register of lobbyists covers more than those currently covered by the existing voluntary registers.
“It is a completely wasted opportunity to increase transparency if a statutory register of lobbyists only covers primarily those who are already transparent, and not all professional lobbyists.”