The NCVO plans to publish a code of good practice for lobbying and campaigning by charities that is expected to set out general standards in areas such as transparency, financial disclosure, neutrality and focus on impact.
It is being developed in response to the launch this week of the government’s Transparency of Lobbying, Non-Party Campaigning and Trade Union Administration Bill, which NCVO has been critical of since its development a year ago.
NCVO had been keen for charities to be included on a statutory register of lobbyists, but changed its mind last year, when government said internal lobbyists would not need to register. Sir Stuart Etherington, chief executive of NCVO, called the move “weak” and said the register had been “watered down in the face of feedback by private-sector interests”.
And NCVO did not mince its words with the publishing of the bill on a lobbying register this week.
Karl Wilding, director of public policy at NCVO called it a “missed opportunity to restore some trust in politics”:
“People have a right to know who is trying to influence policy and why. The best way to achieve full transparency is with a universal register, run by an independent body, linked to a clear code of conduct,” he said.
“While charities aren’t generally thought to be part of the problem, we believe they should nevertheless have the highest standards of accountability and transparency. Given the narrow scope of this bill, we will create our own code of good practice for charities lobbying and campaigning.”
The government’s lobbying bill will introduce a statutory register for lobbying consultancies and tighter regulations for the amount organisations can spend on political campaigning during election periods.
Chloe Stables, NCVO’s parliamentary and media manager, said it would consult with its members on its proposed code of practice for lobbying and campaigning for charities.
She said it was disappointing that the government’s bill did not include its own code of conduct, or an independent regulator and universality.
