Australia’s lobbying code of conduct needs to be enshrined into law and should impose penalties for breaches to increase transparency, integrity advocates say.
A parliamentary inquiry will hold a public hearing on Monday to examine the access lobbyists have to Parliament House in Canberra and whether rules are adequate.
The Centre for Public Integrity has called for the lobbying code, which guides dealings with government representatives, to be legislated in a bid to incentivise compliance and increase transparency.
The code should also include penalties for breaches and refuse registration.
Enshrining the code would bring the Commonwealth up to date with Canada, the United Kingdom, and most of the nation’s states.
In its submission, the centre for public integrity urges the definition of lobbying to be broadened to include any attempt to influence the decision-making of parliamentarians.
Professor of constitutional law Anne Twomey in her submission noted almost 1800 passes for Parliament House had been issued, with the majority given to registered lobbyists.
This gave them greater advantage over other organisations or members of the public who wanted to influence politicians, her submission reads.
“In short, it opens the door to undue influence and potentially corrupt behaviour,” she says.
“Facilitating such opportunities is both unwise and inappropriate.”
The Attorney-General’s Department administers the Lobbying Code of Conduct and the Australian Government Register of Lobbyists.
The Public Health Association of Australia wrote that it was “timely” lobbyists’ conduct was being scrutinised as it was a “major driver of distrust” in political institutions.
It said more robust systems had been implemented at the state level, with the Commonwealth lacking adequate regulation.
“We urge the government and the parliament to remedy the clearly defective state of lobbying regulation at the federal level, which consists of little more than an ineffective voluntary code of conduct administered by the Attorney-General’s Department,” the submission reads.
