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opinion – columnists ed vaizey MP COMMENT kevin maguire JOURNALIST COMMENT Some ideas as PAN compiles Why there’s rising interest in its ‘top 50’ campaigns ranking the ‘approachable’ Lib Dems his magazine’s quest to research the ‘50 Best Lobbying Campaigns Ever’ strikes me as a laudable but very difficult task. I’m tempted, naturally, to put forward those I was most intimately involved with in my days as a lobbyist. Who, after all, can forget my campaign for ‘Charges’, ‘Access’ and ‘Terms’ (CAT) standards, conducted on behalf of Virgin Direct, Richard Branson’s financial services arm? We did actually get the government to put forward these standards, which were designed to make financial services products simple and easy to understand. The scheme was voluntary and therefore soon died a death. But as I am currently leading a campaign for thousands of investors who have lost everything in so-called 100 per cent secure products, I now wish we had pushed harder. Paradoxically, the ‘best’ campaigns are often those that are completely wrong-headed, and stave off either the inevitable, or prolong the agony. After all, wouldn’t you put down Arthur Scargill’s campaign for the miners as one of the most successful, in the ’70s and ’80s? He brought down one government, and brought another to heel. But by 1984 he had gone as far as he could, and a great industry that should have been allowed to restructure and modernise was instead brought to its knees by a leadership that could not take a long-term view. Are we seeing the same with Post Office privatisation, which was successfully fought off The most successful in the 1990s and has been successfully seen off at the end of the noughties as well? It’s imposcampaign at sible to say whether these short-term victories the moment, in will herald long-term success or imminent fiterms of impact, nancial disaster. if not necessarily The problem with successful campaigns achievement, is the is that everyone thinks they can do them. Now MPs are asked to sign up to a campaign campaign to save about twice a day, the effect of which is hard the British pub to discern. So campaigns today have to punch through a lot of noise. The most successful campaign at the moment, in terms of impact, if not necessarily achievement, is the campaign to save the British pub, which has a lot of MPs engaged. If I had to choose the best lobbying campaign of all time, though, it would be one from within government, to government. That would have to be the 1960s Apollo missions. The time period from the day Kennedy announced the mission to the day that man set foot on the moon, was less than a decade. But the president who announced it was dead, the programme was hugely expensive, and so much could have gone awry in the intervening years. But NASA and Congress kept their eye on the goal, and achieved one of the most extraordinary technological achievements of all time. There isn’t much that can compare to that. PAN Ed Vaizey is shadow culture minister and MP for Wantage; he is a former director of the public affairs team of Consolidated Communications T orget swine flu, it’s the yellow peril that you should be thinking about this summer. Nick Clegg will drink sangria and slap on the sun-block in Spain after a respectable few months. The Liberal Democrat leader has grown in stature, finally escaping the ‘Clegg-over’ tag and the shadow of 30 lovers. Linking arms with Joanna Lumley to champion the Gurkhas was a masterstroke (as recent editions of Public Affairs News have acknowledged). Michael Martin’s P45 was signed when Clegg declared that he’d lost confidence in the Speaker. And his ‘clean-up politics’ stand caught the public mood. Vince Cable’s the man-of-the-economic-mom yet Clegg’s given him his head instead of sulking, showing the confidence to encourage rather than thwart a deputy who frequently overshadows. If I was in the The result is that political hacks are taking lobbying game, more interest in the Lib Dems. The party’s spokesI’d get to know people get more airtime on radio and TV. If I was one or two of in the lobbying game, I’d get to know one or two the yellow peril of the yellow peril. There’s a chance – and I accept that many view it as an outside chance – that next spring, the Lib Dems could find themselves holding the balance of power for the first time since the late 1970s. David Cameron has got one foot in Downing Street but it isn’t certain that the Tory leader will win an overall majority. Starting with fewer MPs than Michael Foot when Labour were crushed in 1983, Cameron still has a mountain to climb on polling day. To scale that mountain he must conquer an electoral system requiring the Conservatives to be several points up on Labour just to be equal on seats. To secure an overall majority, Cameron needs a bigger swing than Thatcher over Callaghan in 1979 after the Winter of Discontent. The conventional wisdom in Westminster and, I’m sure, among lobbyists, is that Cameron, who is currently recording comfortable doublefigure opinion-poll leads, will do it. The conventional wisdom’s been wrong before – in 1992 many pundits (but not me!) predicted that Kinnock would beat Major. I’d put my pound on Cameron winning most seats but I’d also hedge my bet in volatile times. Clegg and Cable enjoy the headlines but I’m impressed by the calibre of a number of Lib Dem frontbenchers. Chris Huhne, the home affairs spokesman pipped for the leadership by Clegg, is adroit and wouldn’t break sweat stepping into the actual cabinet. Ed Davey, Danny Alexander, Steve Webb, Norman Lamb, David Laws, Jenny Willott, David Heath and Michael Moore all know what they’re talking about. And unlike many Labour ministers and increasingly precious Tory frontbenchers, most Lib Dems remain approachable. PAN Kevin Maguire is associate editor (politics) at the Daily Mirror F August 2009 | PublicAffairsNews | 19 August 2009 DS AR – AW S N ER IDE S PA W INN E IN SE www.publicaffairsnews.c inside this issue Chemicals lobby suspended from Commission’s register Complaint from Friends of the Earth Europe over CEFIC’s declared spend triggers action By ian hall MP S IN OUR MIDST? The PPCs who work in lobbying Ideas sent in so far for our ’50 Best Lobbying Campaigns Ever’ ranking... ...keep them coming to top50campaigns@publicaf news PPCs take jobs as public affairs consultants Conservative election candidate launches own PA consultancy; another takes role at PLMR The Conservatives’ PPC for Yeovil, Kevin Davis, has launched a public affairs consultancy named Cratus, after the Greek god of strength. Davis told PAN that clie news Lobby register for France paris: France’s Parliament is introducing a register of lobbyists as the global trend towards regulation of the profession takes in another European country. The register – which will only be voluntary – is to launch at the start of the next parliamentary session in O news McCarthy joins 4Children Whitehall expert is new public affairs director at young people’s charity National children’s charity 4Children has recruited a former special adviser in four Whitehall departments as its top lobbyist. Claire McCarthy has just started as director of public affairs, aim New-biz round-up Your essential monthly digest of organisations appointing or changing consultancies CONSUMER FORUM • BRITISH WIND ENERGY ASSOCIATION • ABI • PORT OF DOVER • PREMIER INN • KINGFISHER • World HEPATITIS ALLIANCE Association of British Insurers – Hanover The Association of British Insu news Holiday lets job for Edelman Mobilisation on cards to fight planned reform of Furnished Home Lettings rules Edelman has been appointed by the Holiday Cottages Group (HCG) – the UK’s largest holiday-cottage agency – to lobby against proposed changes to tax rules on holiday lettings. Chancellor news people moves Ofwat has hired David Hackett to the new role of European affairs manager. Hackett, who has previously worked for organisations including the East of England Development Agency, reports to head of public affairs Ian Hulme. www.publicaffairsnews.c Union Unite’s group launches Unio Media How political rivals are faring in the press commons incheS: Burnham, Lansley and Lamb rival PARLIAMENTARIANS’ press coverage – number of mentions 22 20 Number of UK national newspaper articles mentioning MP 18 16 14 12 10 8 6 4 2 0 1 July 2 July 3 July 4 July 5 July 6 July 7 July 8 July 9 J Consultation tracker Your essential monthly digest of new consultations of interest to the public affairs community NEW DEVELOPMENTS IN LONDON • RADIOACTIVE WASTE • MOTORSPORT AND AEROSPACE • UNLICENSED MEDICINES • DIABETES CARE CONSULTATIONS LAUNCHED IN THE PAST month DCSF – Allegations of abuse a european news US Chamber hunts director Brussels role created to champion the ‘reduction of regulatory barriers’ BRUSSELS: The US Chamber of Commerce is hunting an executive director for its Brussels office to ‘advocate a pro-business agenda before European policymakers’. The person taking the newl european news european News in brief WHY THE CONSERVATIVES MATTER: ON PAN www.publicaffairsnews.c ONLINE 17JUL The Conservatives in the European Parliament could prove to be more powerful than ever in their new grouping – and should be ignored by lobbyists ‘at their peril’. That is the advice of Da european news End of an era for agency boss Alistair McLeish steps down at Central and Eastern European specialist MMD BUDAPEST/MOSCOW: Huntsworthbecomes Dobson’s deputy, owned Central and Eastern while remaining Eurasia chief. European (CEE) corporate Lock, who joined MMD in 2004, comms and public BAR . RESTAURANT . CAFÉ Located moments from the Houses of Parliament Catering for events 10-180 people Exclusive Hire Meetings and Conferences Bar and Café Area Four Millbank, London SW1P 3JA Four Millbank, London SW1P 3JA Tel: 020 7233 0032 Tel: 020 7233 0032 Fax: 020 7233 0010 Fax: 020 7233 0010 think-tank news Interim PR chief at ODI The Overseas Development Institute (ODI) is to launch a recruitment search in the ‘early autumn’ to replace head of comms Antony Robbins, who has moved to the same role at the Museum of London. The ODI – which won Think-Tank of the Year at the 2007 PAN Awards U derstand ng g vernment fr m e ery ang e To find out how we can help you, please contact: London Simon Nayyar Citigate Dewe Rogerson t. +44 (0)20 7282 2835 simon.nayyar@citigatedr Edinburgh John Mullin Citigate Dewe Rogerson t. +44 (0)131 225 8024 john.mullin@citigatedr. Brussels Samantha Seewoos opinion – leader editor’s COMMENT Paris leapfrogs Westminster in the race to regulate hose following the halting, haphazard progress towards regulation of the sector in Westminster and Brussels will be interested to read our report (p4) that the French Parliament has become the latest legislature t opinion – pan panel Q HOT TOPIC: FRANCE’S LOBBY REGISTER [ THE QUESTION: Do you foresee problems? Fabrice Alexandre Managing Partner, Communication Institutions (C I) France’s Parliament has become the latest national legislature to commit to introducing a register of lobbyists – albeit a volun opinion – columnists ed vaizey MP COMMENT kevin maguire JOURNALIST COMMENT Some ideas as PAN compiles Why there’s rising interest in its ‘top 50’ campaigns ranking the ‘approachable’ Lib Dems his magazine’s quest to research the ‘50 Best Lobbying Campaigns Ever’ strikes me as a laudable but ver Profile – MILES CELIC The Man United fan who is the new Man from the Pru After Oxford University, and working for companies including Fishburn Hedges and HSBC, Miles Celic recently landed the top public affairs job at FTSE 100 insurance giant Prudential. Not bad for a ‘working-class’ Salford lad, s PROFILE – MILES CELIC His parents were not much involved in politics: originally from Yugoslavia, forging a life in a new country, they wanted to keep their heads down and work hard. “It was a classic working-class immigrant background,” says Celic. Celic made his way from the local state school to LOBBYISTS AND PARLIAMENT MPs in our midst? In the fourth installment of our ‘Lobbyists and Parliament’ series, Ian Hall finds out how many of the next election’s confirmed prospective parliamentary candidates (PPCs) work in public affairs/communications Philip Allott COMMS/PA JOB: Founding managing LOBBYISTS AND PARLIAMENT Darren Caplan COMMS/PA JOB: Director of B2L Public Affairs in London STANDING FOR: Conservatives in Hackney North and Stoke Newington Richard Clein COMMS/PA JOB: Associate director at Bell Pottinger North STANDING FOR: Lib Dems in Sefton Central Damian Collins COMMS/PA JO LOBBYISTS AND PARLIAMENT ned six of the ‘Eyes on the prize’: in July last year PAN conve e; this feature listed in this edition for an extended featur PPCs in PAN’s ‘Lobbyists and Parliament’ series was the first Nick Clegg: the current leader of the Liberal Democrats formerly worked at GJW Govern recruitment appointments August 2009 | PublicAffairsNews | 25 electus making the right connection Go on! Make the leap! Electus is the natural recruitment partner in public affairs and corporate communications For an informative, yet confidential, conversation with one of our consultants please call 020 7091 7570 or visit www.electus-group.com “STEVE ATACK IS ONE OF EUROPE’S MOST RESPECTED EXECUTIVE SEARCH CONSULTANTS IN PUBLIC AFFAIRS AND GOVERNMENT RELATIONS BUT HE ALSO UNDERTAKES SIGNIFICANT ASSIGNMENTS IN RELATED FIELDS INCLUDING ASSISTING CONSULTANCIES ACQUIRE OTHERS, THE CREATION OF INTERNATIONAL STRATEGIC ALLIANCES AND PROVIDING GU Thursday 5 November 2009 The Claridge, Brussels Nominations are now open: www.theparliament.com/e Campaign of the year Consultancy of the year Consultant of the year Corporate Public Affairs Professional of the year In-house Communications Team of the year NGO of the year Personality of the year Th bridge_195_60 copy.pdf 16/12/2008 10:57:14 classified C M POLITICAL INTELLIGENCE Dods Monitoring is a specialist political information provider delivering real-time monitoring to the political and policymaking community, from multinational corporations to trade associations, government agencies out and about my life CRAIG JONES Head of media and public affairs Legal Services Board Where do you live? Near Liverpool Street. I have been in the central-east bit of London since moving here four years ago. What’s your media diet? The comment pages of all the broadsheets at breaks during the day out and about All group shots are captioned left to right. To include photos of your event, send images to ian.hall@publicaffairsn Chris Quigley, CIOT head of external relations Simon Goldie and Makis Galiatsatos of the European Parliament’s UK office Fleishman-Hillard (F-H) Brussels summer cocktai Get your communications team the recognition it deserves The PRCA represents over 150 of the UK’s top PR firms. Because the best PR comes from agencies and in-house teams working together, we’re inviting in-house communications teams to join us as Associate Members, helping you ensure you have the