What are stakeholders and lobbyists? Are they legal?
Governments are entrusted in public office to act in the public interest. However, this does not often occur in practice.
Political stakeholders are people, groups or businesses with a vested interest in the decision-making and activities of government. Similarly, lobbyists are people who want to influence laws and regulations on behalf of a group or individual who hires them.
Lobbying involves communicating with politicians to try to influence their decision-making. Large private corporations and businesses are highly likely to hire lobbyists to influence the government to act in ways that are beneficial to them.
Professional lobbyists can receive special orange passes that allow them special access in Parliament House in Canberra. This level of access is granted only to lobbyists and is not offered to regular voters.
Lobbyists are completely legal in Australia, and the regulations for lobbying are weak. In the Federal Parliament, lobbyists outnumber politicians three to one.
The Attorney-General’s Department has a register of lobbyists, who they work for, and a code of conduct. The code of conduct bans “corrupt, dishonest or illegal” conduct by lobbyists. It also says lobbyists must aim to ensure “truth and accuracy” in what they tell politicians.
However, the code of conduct is not enforceable, and there are no financial penalties for those who breach it. The department may remove a lobbyist who has breached the code. However, there is no obligation to.
Further, ministers and politicians do not need to disclose who they have met with in the Federal Parliament. Politicians can easily accept meetings with any lobbyists representing any organisation, and the greater public or electorate of that politician will never know.
This current lack of enforceable regulation and transparency has caused corruption and dishonest influence. Powerful groups and organisations have triumphed over the general public in some recent debates, including gambling and pokies reform, pharmaceutical prices, toll roads and superannuation.