It’s time for Cameron to come clean on Crosby

Everywhere you look, the actions of governments are under close scrutiny. The test which all governing parties are increasingly required to pass is whether or not they are on the side of the many or on the side of the few.

On the matter of lobbying, David Cameron has once again shown he has chosen the wrong side.  Worse still, it is becoming apparent that he has allowed many of those close to him to operate in the shadows, leaving himself and his government open to accusations that they have things that they wish to hide.

Now, despite considerable public and political pressure, Cameron is resisting calls for his own- personally appointed- lobbyist and advisor, Lynton Crosby, to publish his current client list.

Mr Crosby is a professional lobbyist, who’s lobbying firm Crosby Textor has long-standing links with both the tobacco and the alcohol industry. His company was on a retainer with British American Tobacco when cigarette companies fought the introduction of plain packaging in Australia, and a number of organisations which campaigned against minimum alcohol pricing in Australia are also clients of his company. Significantly, Crosby Textor’s client list is only public due to Australia’s register of lobbyists.

Yet Cameron thought it appropriate for Mr Crosby to be embedded in Number 10 Downing Street, at the heart of British government.

Despite his new job in Number 10, Mr Crosby continues his active involvement with his firm.

Incidentally, in the last month, the Government has abandoned its plans to legislate for plain cigarette packaging, along with its plans to introduce a minimum price for alcohol.

Let’s be clear; this is not simply limited to a potential conflict of interest. From the outside it looks very much like a right-wing lobbyist is dictating the coalition’s public health policy.

Remarkably, the lobbying revelations this weekend have not been limited to the scandal of a powerful lobbyist inside Number 10.

The reports about the Chair of the Energy Select Committee, Tim Yeo, allegedly claiming to have coached a paying client on how to give evidence to his own committee, as well as telling undercover reporters that he could facilitate introductions to people in Government, will only add to the already significant public concern about the relationship between politicians and lobbyists.

I have been calling, on behalf of the Opposition, for progress on the introduction of a statutory register of lobbyists along with a clear code of conduct since the start of this Parliament. It is now more important than ever before.

Lobbying ought to be a healthy and necessary part of our democracy. It can help politicians to have fully informed debates, and allows for open access to government by constituents, individuals and organisations.

But, as the public administration select committee’s recent report stated, while lobbying “enhances democracy … it can also subvert it”. The recent revelations regarding the lobbying of Parliamentarians certainly reveal the extent to which democracy can appear to be subverted.

Yet on such an important issue, the Government has prevaricated and delayed. In three years, Cameron has failed to bring forward any meaningful proposals to regulate the lobbying industry.

The Government is trying to avoid meaningful legislation even now.

Its cynical response to the latest panic was to deliberately conflate the issues of party funding and regulating lobbying. The government sought to distract and dilute the core issue of lobbying reform in a desperate attempt to avoid legislating at all costs.

Labour is absolutely clear on what needs to be done. As I have set out time and time again, we need an enforceable statutory register of lobbyists with a clear definition of lobbying. Such a statutory register should include all professional lobbyists, whether third party or not.

It must have a clear code of conduct, the first line of which should be to forbid financial relations between lobbyists and Parliamentarians, right down to who pays for the lunch.

Finally, any code of conduct must be backed by strong sanctions in order for it to be effective, including preventing the worst offenders from practicing by removal from the register. All of this must be publicly accessible and easy to understand.

The latest revelations show yet again that David Cameron is out of touch and standing up for the wrong people. He used to say that sunlight was the best disinfectant, but it seems that he wants to keep his relationship with his own professional lobbyist and adviser in the shadows. Such lack of action serves only to increase the cynicism and disengagement of the general public.

It’s time for meaningful legislation to introduce a statutory register, and it’s time David Cameron came clean about Crosby.

Jon Trickett is Shadow Minister for the Cabinet Office