Lobbying

Lobbying

Consultant lobbying covers a wide remit, including communications to make or amend legislation, policy or make contracts, grants or licences. Communications covered are from lobbyists, generally charities, to Ministers or Permanent Secretaries, and may be extended to special advisers by regulation.

Consultant lobbying occurs when the following criteria apply:

•
an organisation makes direct oral, written or electronic communications personally to a Minister of the Crown, Permanent Secretary (or equivalents) currently in post (referred to in official guidance as 'Government Representatives'), relating to the:
1. ◦
  development, adoption or modification of any proposal

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Latest Public Law News

No substantive legitimate expectation from an oral assurance (R (Grantchester PC) v Greater Cambridge Partnership)

Public Law analysis: The High Court found that an alleged oral assurance given by a local councillor in an informal meeting with Grantchester residents did not give rise to a legitimate expectation that a proposed greenway would not go through Grantchester village if Grantchester residents did not support it. The court held that for a substantive legitimate expectation (effectively a right of veto by villagers) to arise from an oral statement, any such statement must contain ‘a particularly clear and unequivocal promise’. Given the inconclusiveness of oral evidence of what was in fact said, Mrs Justice Lieven concluded that it was unlikely that the local councillor would have said anything that could amount to a binding commitment. The court’s approach in this case illustrates the forensic difficulty in setting out to prove the existence of a sufficiently clear and unambiguous oral promise capable of giving rise to a legitimate expectation. Written by Tetyana Nesterchuk, barrister at Fountain Court Chambers.

Council of Europe responds to joint letter challenging ECtHR

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