The Ethics and Integrity Commission has today published a report on lobbying, business appointment rules and disclosure, in response to a request from the prime minister in March this year. The PM’s request formed part of a standards overhaul following the sacking of Peter Mandelson as US ambassador in March.
The EIC report includes a series of recommendations around lobbying, business appointment rules and financial disclosure.
Business Appointment Rules
The BARs, which were introduced in 1975 and are owned by the Cabinet Office, apply to all ministers and crown servants when accepting new appointments on leaving government. Their purpose is to safeguard against the possibility that an appointment might be a reward for past favours; or that an employer might benefit from privileged information held by a former official or minister; or that a former official or minister might improperly exploit privileged access to contacts in government.
The recommendations focusing on BARs are intended to support the government to “modernise them and improve coordination of the bodies charged with administering them”, the report sets out.
One of the weaknesses the EIC picks out in the current BARs is the lack of meaningful sanctions for breaching them, which has led to their being criticised as “unenforceable” or “toothless”.
Rule breaking “results in negative media coverage, which highlights the lack of sanctions for breaches of the rules”, the report points out. However, the EIC heard evidence during their review which said that legal enforcement of the rules would be necessary to address non-compliance.
Legal experts had determined that the BARs would not be enforceable unless government committed to criminal sanctions, according to evidence given during the review.
The report recommends that the Cabinet Office “should explore the potential for sanctions for breaches of the BARs, including those against prospective employers”. A further recommendation suggests that a register of individuals and their employing companies found to be in serious breach of the BARs should be published centrally.
“A legally enforceable system could have the unintended consequence of deterring talented individuals from joining the public sector,” the report suggests, “and a more punitive system could seriously undermine the future resilience of the civil service”.
The government must balance the need for effective sanctions with the risk that this could deter talent away from the public sector, the report says. The modernised BARs should provide a “robust framework” for protecting public office, which does not dissuade outside talent.
Lobbying
The Ethics and Integrity Commission has put an emphasis on lobbying in its report, which was carried out in a relatively short window.
“Put simply, lobbying is an activity intended to influence decision making. It is a key means by which people can seek to ensure their interests are taken into account when decisions are made by government about matters affecting them,” the report explains.
Lobbying becomes problematic when it is carried out opaquely, it continues. Which means that transparency is important: “Without transparency, interested parties have no basis for assessing the fairness and objectivity of decision-making processes. They will lack a clear view of whose perspectives and preferences are being heard by ministers and senior officials.”
The EIC report aims to “make it easier to see which groups and individuals are lobbying the government and the matters on which they are seeking to exert influence”.
One of a number of recommendations related to lobbying suggests that lobbyists should have to register any communications with “ministers and permanent secretaries… special advisers, directors general, directors, non-executive directors or any other government advisers (paid or unpaid) equivalent to director general or director level”.
Government should not accept any meeting requests “to discuss matters that fall within the definition of lobbying” unless that organisation has registered on the Lobbying Register, the report says.
The report also recommends that meetings held between special advisers and external organisations “should be included within government transparency releases”.
Disclosure of financial interests
The EIC report also addresses issues with the disclosure of financial interests, and looks to support the government with improving the current system.
Key recommendations include reducing duplication in the information that ministers are required to provide to the independent advisor, moving away from fragmented, locally managed financial disclosure templates towards a greater use of modern technology. The Cabinet Office should “make it easier for the public to locate, navigate and understand officials’ declared interests”.
Chair of the Ethics and Integrity Commission, Doug Chalmers, said: “The recommendations in this report centre on openness as a common theme.” He added that “this report provides an evidence-based way to build a more trustworthy system that, in time, should rebuild trust in government decision-making”.