§ Lord Strathclydeasked Her Majesty's Government:
Whether meetings between officials, information officers or special advisers and lobbying organisations are, under the Civil Service Code or Rules for Special Advisers or otherwise, reported to Ministers or the permanent secretary in each department; if so, whether they will publish the rules for recording such meetings; and, if not, whether they have plans to introduce routine logging of them; and [HL2931]
Whether meetings between Ministers and lobbying organisations are, under the Rules of Procedure for Ministers or otherwise, reported to the permanent secretary in each department; if so, whether they will publish the rules for reporting and recording such meetings; and if not, whether they have plans to introduce routine logging of them; and [HL2932]
Whether meetings between Ministers, special advisers, information officers or officials and lobbying organisations are logged and recorded by any Government department; and, if so, whether they will state by which ones they are recorded, in what way 269WA they are recorded and whether they are reported centrally. [HL2933]
§ The Minister of State, Cabinet Office (Lord Falconer of Thoroton)There is no requirement for meetings between Ministers, special advisers or civil servants and lobbying organisations to be recorded or reported. The First Report of the Nolan Committee onStandards in Public Life expressly recommended against the establishment of a public register of lobbyists. Ministers and civil servants meet many groups who are concerned to press their own interests or those of their clients. Ministers and officials take due care to consider these representations within the wider public interest and within Government policy. In addition, some lobbyists may attend meetings with Ministers and civil servants but as part of a delegation led by an MP or outside interest group, and the information will not therefore be separately identifiable. It would not therefore be practicable to keep a register of such contacts.