UKPAC

A chance to demonstrate transparency for all who lobby

At our Council meeting on 26 July UKPAC Directors finalised arrangements to open the register to any individual or organisation which undertakes work they consider falls within our definition of lobbying.

Members of APPC and CIPR (where appropriate) are included in the register as part of their membership of those bodies. They have also agreed that UKPAC may audit the way in which they handle complaints and operate their own codes of conduct.

Those who voluntarily include their details on our register, and are not members of APPC or CIPR will sign up to our guiding principles and make clear who they are and who their clients are. It is an opportunity to show a readiness to be open in anticipation of any requirements which the government might impose.

Our register is the only one of its kind:  online and fully searchable by organisation, individual or client, updated on a quarterly basis with those registered being able to update and access their details at any time, and it is supported by two of the main membership bodies in public affairs – APPC and CIPR.

What will we charge?

As a not-for-profit we seek simply to recover our costs and ensure no subsidising of the wider membership by the APPC or CIPR. Directors therefore decided that annual registration (which includes quarterly updates) would cost:

Organisation                      £450

Not-for-profit                      £250

Individual                             £50

We are offering a simple way to demonstrate openness, nothing more and nothing less, while the government considers the options for the longer term. We have a register which works and we see this as an opportunity for those who lobby to demonstrate what can be achieved voluntarily, and to show all with an interest what information can be made available and easily accessible in one place.

We are looking for the first 10 companies and the first 10 individuals to show their commitment to register with UKPAC.

We shall be contacting those who have expressed an interest previously in registering with UKPAC, but if you or your company would like to be in the first edition of our wider register contact us now. Once we have reached our target number of commitments to register we shall proceed with the website enhancements with a view to making public any new registrants by mid-September.

For further information or to express an interest in registering please contact Ann Austin at secretary@citizenpower.co.uk.