What are the main types of lobbying?

Ethical lobbying is a legitimate activity and an important part of the democratic process. Lobbyists can help individuals and organisations communicate their views on matters of public interest to the government and opposition and, in doing so, improve outcomes for the community as a whole.

Generally, lobbying is a very broad term. For the purposes of the Integrity Act 2009 (Qld), the term ‘lobbying’ means any attempt to influence the decision-making of a government or opposition representative in the exercise of their official functions on behalf of a third party, for a fee or other reward. Under the Integrity Act 2009 (Qld) lobbyists who act on behalf of a third-party clients must register with the Integrity Commissioner before they contact a state or local government representative for the purpose of lobbying activities.

A ‘lobbyist’ is an entity that carries out a lobbying activity for a fee or other reward for a third-party client, or whose employees or contractors carry out a lobbying activity for a third-party client.

Under section 41(2) of the Integrity Act 2009 (Qld), a ‘third party client’ is an entity that engages another entity to provide services such as lobbying for a fee or other reward.
Section 42(1) of the Integrity Act 2009 (Qld) defines lobbying activities as; Contact with a government representative in an effort to influence state or local government decision-making, including—

1. the making or amendment of legislation; and
2. the development or amendment of a government policy or program; and
3. the awarding of a government contract or grant; and
4. the allocation of funding; and
5. the making of a decision about planning or giving of a development approval under the Planning Act 2009; or…”

Section 42(1)(b) extends the scope of the definition to contact with an opposition representative in an effort to influence opposition decision-making, including—

1. the making or amendment of legislation; and
2. the development or amendment of an opposition policy or program; and
3. the opposition's position or view in relation to state or local government decision-making, including, for example, the matters mentioned in section 42(1)(a) of the Integrity Act 2009 (Qld).

Have you ever tried to convince your parents to do something you wanted them to do? Did you prepare an articulated case in your favour? Did you do any research beforehand to show them the benefits of the decision? Or did you offer them something they wanted to sweeten them?

If you did any of this, then you lobbied them!

In this article, we are going to look at what lobbying is, and who is considered to be "a lobbyist". We will also look at types and examples of lobbying with a focus on government lobbying and the influence that lobbyists have on legislators.

Lobbyists Meaning

To Lobby, is to try to influence decision-makers to your advantage. This expression comes from the fact that members of Parliament meet in the hallway (lobby) of the Houses of Parliament before and after parliamentary debates. Here, from as early as 1640, they met and received and responded to messages from citizens.

So what is a lobbyist? A lobbyist is anyone who is paid to lobby. The term can refer to an individual or a company representing a paying third party.

Lobbyist

An individual or group who is paid by a third party to influence decision-makers to the advantage of the third party.

Lobbyists are significant features in the UK political system as they can provide valuable information that can enrich the decision-making process with details that might have otherwise escaped the decision-makers. Additionally, lobbyists can increase the pluralist nature of our parliamentary system.

Pluralism

Is the philosophy that holds that different people can peacefully coexist in society and equally take part in it.

Types of lobbying

There are many forms of lobbying, from taking part in public consultations, to approaching government officials directly. Depending on its background and expertise, the lobbying agency can be seen as an "expert" on the subject. This might lead to them being actively encouraged to become part of the decision-making process on specific issues.

Lobbying can be divided into three broad categories:

• Direct Lobbying,
• Grassroots Lobbying
• and Electoral Lobbying.

Before we look at these in more detail, what do you think we mean by each of them?

Direct lobbying

Direct lobbying is when a lobbyist approaches a person in power about a specific piece of legislation while expressing their specific views on it. This can happen both in person, in a face-to-face meeting; or indirectly by phone or email.

Grassroots (indirect) lobbying

Grassroots lobbying is when the lobbyist approaches the public in an attempt to get them to put pressure on the government about an issue that favours the lobbyist.

Lobbying is only considered grassroots if it reflects a specific view on the legislation AND it encourages the public to take some sort of action to make themselves heard on the subject.

The actions suggested could be accompanied by a ready-made petition to sign, a template letter to send and/or the details of the specific legislator or legislators to contact.

Electoral lobbying

Electoral lobbying is when a lobby group provides funds or resources for a candidate's electoral campaign. As we discussed earlier, this does not mean that, if and once elected, the candidate will necessarily make decisions favourable to the lobbyist.

In 1997, just before the general election, Bernie Ecclestone, the head of Formula 1 donate £1m to the Labour party. Once the Labour party won the election and the prime minister met with Ecclestone, the Department of health tried to exempt Formula1 from the ban on tobacco advertising the EU proposed.

Having looked at the types of lobbying, we can now zoom in on some specific examples. While reading these, try to fit them in one of the above categories- direct lobbying, grassroots (indirect) lobbying, or electoral lobbying.

There are a number of ways lobbyists engage with the government to influence political agendas and policymakers, however, not all are deemed "proper". Below are a number of examples which document a range of misuses of government lobbying.

1994 marks an important year in the history of modern lobbying in the UK. the British newspaper the Guardian, reported a scandal involving a government lobbyist who bribed two Conservative MPs to get them to ask parliamentary questions on behalf of his client. The report was followed by a lengthy case that found the MPs' behaviour as falling short of the expectations of the House of Parliament. The case also opened the gates for many more reports to come to the surface together with calls for increased regulation.

In 2007, the Select Committee on Standards and Privileges published a report on the conduct of David Cameron's chief fundraisers as well as some fundraising event where donors were able to meet Cameron. The report found it "improper" to employ parliamentary staff for fundraising purposes. and Lord McNally, from the Lords Committee, commented on how this was:

Yet another example on how pressure on political parties to raise even larger sums from private sources pollutes our politics"1

David Cameron is a politician, businessman, lobbyist and author who was a Member of Parliament (MP) between 2001 and 2016, and British Prime Minister between 2010 and 2016.

In 2009 another important report was published. This was by the House of Commons Public Administration Select Committee. The main outcomes were:-acknowledging the importance of lobbying in the democratic role as a legitimate channel for political participation and a source of valuable information for the government.- Recommending a statutory register of all lobbying activity while observing that the current status quo of the industry self-regulating was "fragmented"2

It wasn't till 2014 that the Transparency of Lobbying, Non-Party Campaigning and Trade Unions Administration Act was passed. It is called "the Lobbying bill" for short and it imposed registration of all lobbying activity, of trade unions and their members, and it lowered the limit on non-registered third-party donations to election candidates.

This bill was necessary due to the increasing loss of trust in politicians, and despite attracting some criticism, it was seen as a step forward toward transparency.

The terms "lobby" and "lobbyist" are being replaced by terms such as "public relations" or "political consultancy". Can you think of why this may be?

When thinking about this question, it is important to consider that over the last 20-30 years there have been several scandals in the UK that have tainted the title of lobbyist. This has created associations of lobbyists with the idea of bribery, so the title is being changed in an attempt to create distance between the two concepts.

Lord Hoyle, a member of the House of Lords was paid in 2007 to introduce a member of an arms lobbyist to the British defence minister. This example falls in a grey area of legal behaviour with questionable ethics around the use of payment.

Bribery is when a certain, definite outcome is bought or exchanged for goods or services. With lobbying, the outcome is not definite: lobbying tries to influence the decision with donations or contributions. Bribery is illegal, Lobbying isn't. And, as we will see below, today lobbyists have to formally register their activity to ensure transparency.

Lobbyists influence on Legislators

So, to what extent do you think the actions of lobbyists influence legislators?

I think to answer this question we have to consider two issues.

The first one is the issue of payment. Companies and industries with plenty of money are more able to pay the (often high) lobbyist fees to be heard by legislators than the general population. This example of elitism can sway the opinion of politicians who might only hear one side of the story.

Elitism refers to both the belief that a society is best led by an "elite", a dominant minority group; and to the behaviours associated to such a group such as the ability to pay to influence legislators.

The second issue is a situation named "revolving door".

Revolving door, in politics, refers to a tendency of some politicians to smoothly switch back and forth between the role of political representative and regulator, to the role of a member of industries that might be affected by the regulations introduced by politicians.

These issues raise many questions on conflict of interest at best, and corruption at worst, that need to be further dissected to know the real extent of lobbyists' influence on legislators.

Corruption: is when somebody entrusted with power, takes advantage of such trust for personal benefits.

A lobbyists is an individual or group who is paid by a third party to influence decision-makers to the advantage of the third party. 

Direct, grassroots (indirect) and electoral

Joining a consultation, organising a face-to-face meeting with a politician or collecting signatures for a petition are all examples of lobbying

Lobbyist, as opposed to people who bribe, are legal.

Despite various attempts to regulate lobbying, the revolving door issues and the high lobbyists' fees raise questions as to the ethics of the industry.

Question

Answer

A lobbyist is an individual or group who is paid by a third party to influence decision-makers to the advantage of the third party.

Question

What is the difference between bribery and lobbying?

Answer

Bribery is when a certain, definite outcome is bought or exchanged for goods or services. Lobbying tries to influence the decision with donations or contributions. Bribery is illegal, Lobbying isn't.

Question

Why is Lobbying important in democracies?

Answer

Lobbying is an important political participation tool and it can provide valuable information to decision-makers.

Question

What are the three main types of lobbying?

Answer

1. Direct

2. Grassroots (indirect)

3. Electoral

Question

Answer

Direct lobbying is when a lobbyist approaches a person in power about a specific piece of legislation while expressing their specific views on it.

Question

What is grassroots lobbying?

Answer

Grassroots lobbying is when the lobbyist approaches the public in an attempt to get them to put pressure on the government on issues or with opinions favourable to the lobbyist.

Question

What is electoral lobbying?

Answer

Electoral lobbying is when a lobby group provides funds or resources for a candidate's electoral campaign.

Question

Which of these isn't an example of lobbying.

Answer

A government lobbyist who paid two Conservative MPs to get them to ask parliamentary questions on behalf of his client.

Question

What did the Lobbying Bill introduce?

Answer

Registration for lobbying activities.

Question

Why is the ethics of lobbying questionable?

Answer

Because of the high fees necessary to employ lobbysts.