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Lobbying (Whitehall)

As always, my hon. Friend knows far more about the inner workings of government than I do. I yield to his superior knowledge of such matters. I know only what I am told, which is what the Government write in their responses. I have tried to describe briefly how the Select Committee got into this issue and the work that we did. I give huge thanks to the members of the Select Committee for the work that they put in on this and every other inquiry. We are a persistent and durable Committee. I also express huge thanks to our Clerk, Steven Mark, and his team for their work in assisting us. Many things are wrong with Parliament—some of us spend a lot of time talking about them—but one thing that is not wrong is the service that we get from our officials, which is exemplary. [Hon. Members: "Hear, hear!"] Indeed, it is almost too good for us at times. That service was indispensable on this report. I have explained why we got into this matter and the argument that we made. We came forward with a set of proposals that is sensible, doable and not over the top. It deals with an issue that systems in every country are having to deal with in some way. Where does that leave us? Our argument is that it is much better to put such reforms in place at a time of relative calm, when there are no scandals or crises. The next time there is a scandal, crisis or report about impropriety in the lobbying industry, there will be instant demands that something be done and we will probably do something that is completely inappropriate. It would be much better to take some time to stand back from the issue and then come forward with a set of sensible proposals that prepares us to deal with such issues or, better still, prevents them. That is what we tried to do. I have spoken of developments elsewhere that show the direction of travel. It is not plausible to suggest, when lobbying regulation is a normal part of almost every other system, that we do not need it. It should be part of the furniture of government and we should do it in a way that is consistent with and appropriate to our tradition. This issue will not go away, and it would be best to deal with it now. I do not know whether some in the industry think that it will go away once this Parliament, this Select Committee and perhaps this Government have gone. I read in a newspaper that a vast number of Conservative parliamentary candidates come from the lobbying industry. Perhaps they think that they will be able to take care of the issue by effective lobbying from inside. Unlike my hon. Friend the Member for Luton, North, I do not know such dark secrets, but simply what I read in the newspapers. However, I am pretty sure that the issue will not go away. It is unfinished business that we must turn our attention to. Not for the first time with some of our reports, it is only subsequently that people decide that something is worth turning to and implementing in full or, at least, in part. The core proposition is simple: in a democracy, people are entitled to know who is lobbying whom about what. It is as simple as that. If we accept that core proposition, it is worth spending some time thinking through what kind of arrangements and procedures would secure the achievement of that principle. That is what we have tried to do in our report, and I hope that it will come to be seen as the basis for some sensible action.