Lobbying regulations cover ‘the tip not the iceberg’
Former NSW Liberal leader Peter Collins has told a forum in Sydney that current laws cover “the tip not the iceberg”.
Collins also predicted that continuing scandals would force governments to reform current legislation to include not only external lobbyists but also those employed directly by the firms doing the lobbying.
”What is regulated in Australia is the tip not the iceberg,” said Collins, who is now chairman of influential Coalition lobbying firm Barton Deakin.
“What is regulated at the moment is third party lobbyists engaged by particular clients, for a particular project. What is unregulated and invisible and constitutes the vast majority of ministerial diaries and appointment and is where 95 per cent of lobbying happens – with in-house lobbyists,” he told the CommsCon conference.
“I will make a prediction. In ten years time all lobbyists will be on a register and all that information will be publicly available. At the moment the only thing that is available, relates to lobbying companies such as the two represented here today.”
Collins made his remarks last week while on a panel discussion with fellow STW lobbyists Simon Banks from Labor aligned Hawker Britton and Matt Hingerty CEO of Barton Deakin, and former Labor NSW Deputy Premier John Watkins.
John Watkins, now CEO of Alzheimer’s Australia, defended the practice of lobbying, despite recent scandals involving Labor powerbrokers such as Eddie Obeid and former mining minister Ian MacDonald.
“Even though we see the Ian MacDonalds and Eddie Obeids, what makes this city work in business and politics is really integrity and trust,” Watkins told the forum.
Hingerty told the forum too many people focused on ministers when lobbying has urged those wanting to influence government to use backbenchers to lobby ministers rather than going directly to the minister.
During the panel discussion on influencing government, Hingerty told the audience that often the best path to engaging government was not going direct to the minister.
“Use the backbenchers – they have a lot more time usually than the minister, they want to help, they want to climb the greasy pole they want to pin their names to something,” said Hingerty during a discussion on the best way to engage government.
“So use them.”
The former senior Liberal staffer who now heads the Liberal and National parties focused lobbying firm, said he had achieved great success as the head of the Australian Tourism Export Council, ATEC, with the approach. “You need find a couple of champions get them on side and get them to lobby on your behalf,” he said.
He told the audience how he worked with backbenchers to create the Parliamentary friends of Tourism within parliament back in the early 2000s. The group met regularly when parliament was sitting and discussed tourism issues.
“It has a really powerful impact and what that meant was when it went to the partyroom 20-30 MPs lobbying hard for (tourism) – that had never happened before.”
Watkins advised the crowd when they did need to go to a minister to start with their staff. “You don’t go straight to the minister, said Watkins “you have to engage with their staff, chiefs of staff – most ministers have different policy advisers.”
“You do your research and you put together a really well researched, well argued piece of work that can be read, analysed and sent to the department. Something that they can get their head around.”
In a discussion moderated by marketing consultant Toby Ralph, panelists also speculated on the possibility of independent MP Bob Katter holding the balance of power after the next election were the result between the two major parties to be close.
Watkins told the conference: “I don’t know what Bob Katter is interested in to be honest — but I know he is interested in delivering to his constituency which is regional and remote Australia. So the things he judges as being important to them. National issues: agriculture, water, some mining issues.”
The former Labor Minister also cited the example of Rob Oakeshott, who is one of a couple independent MPs who currently hold the balance of power in Federal Parliament.
Watkins told the forum how on a recent flight to Oakeshott’s electorate of Port Macquarie he was surprised by the type of people on the flight.
“Normally you go up to Port Macquarie and there people there are going on holidays,” he said.“
“But on this trip up in the morning the plane was literally full of people dress in suits going up to see Rob Oakeshott. Because when someone have that a level of control — the world beat a path to his door.”
“If Bob (Katter) gets the balance of power there are going to be a whole lot of people in suits flying to far northern Queensland.”
Nic Christensen
Lobbyists – the true faceless men who pull the strings.
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