Children's charity group voices alarm over lobbying bill

The children's charity umbrella body voiced its concerns after the Transparency of Lobbying, non Party Campaigning and Trade Union Administration Bill, was backed by MPs at its second reading on Tuesday by 62 votes. 

The bill in its current form would place legal and financial restrictions on charity and professional bodies’ lobbying activities.

Nick Davies, policy manager at Children England, is concerned the bill is too vague and “flawed” and after this latest vote of confidence from MPs will now progress through parliament too swiftly without proper scrutiny.

He said: “The government do not seem to have a clear idea about what the restrictions will practically mean. The legal advice that has been sought says there is a huge amount of discretion about how it will be applied. Organisations that would have previously lobbied may choose not to now for fear that they might be prosecuted.”

If passed, the bill will cap lobbying spending for the period around the general election at £390,000, but Davies says it is unclear how lobbying activity will be defined.

He added: “We have a turnover that is more than that. It will depend how wide they consider what is lobbying. Our whole organisation in some way is trying to speak out on behalf of the children’s sector. Do they include our admin staff or financial staff in that figure? It’s so unclear at the moment.”

Children England is one of a raft of children’s charities to sign a letter to Chloe Smith, the Cabinet Office minister responsible for political and constitutional reform, urging her to ensure the bill does not negatively impact on their lobbying activity. Others to sign include the Child Poverty Action Group and Action for Children.

Children’s professional groups, such as the Royal College of Midwives (RCM), are also concerned about the effect of the bill.