At its Annual General Meeting at the start of this week the APPC re-elected Iain Anderson unopposed as chairman for a further twelve months. The results of elections to both the Management Committee and Young Consultants' Committee (YCC) were also announced at the meeting, which was open to all APPC members. The APPC Management Committee will elect a deputy chair at the APPC's strategy day on 22nd June, while the new chair of the Young Consultants' Committee will be decided at their next meeting. The APPC now has 85 members.
Following his re-appointment, Iain Anderson, Chairman of APPC, said: "It's great to see competition to secure election to both committees - huge congratulations to all those elected. I'm particularly encouraged that young members of our industry are willing to roll their sleeves up and get involved and I look forward to working with the Young Consultants' Committee in the coming year.
"Now that we're beyond the general election cycle APPC's over-riding priority is to engage the new Government as we gear up for the full implementation of the statutory lobbying register properly into a new Parliament. There's not long before ORCL's latest consultation on compliance closes, which is why we're encouraging all of our members to let us know their thoughts so that we can make a powerful case on behalf of third-party lobbyists to the Cabinet Office and the Office of the Registrar of Consultant Lobbyists (ORCL).
"We remain of the view that the Register is flawed and will be seeking a meeting with new Cabinet Office ministers and the Shadows team. We hope that by fully engaging with the Registrar at this crucial juncture that we can both influence the way the register operates as well as ensuring that our members are able to comply with the new regime.
"Our Management Committee will also be meeting later this month to agree APPC's long-term strategy. The key focus of this discussion will be to address how we continue to help raise standards of professionalism in the sector, how we continue to be a strong voice for our members and how we can most effectively work with the Government and officials as the new register gets up and running.
"It's also fantastic news that APPC now has 85 members - more than ever before - and it goes without saying that as third-party lobbyists navigate their way around the new registration system, we'll be doing everything we can do represent their interests in this challenging and changing regulatory environment."
Peter Duncan, Chairman of APPC Scotland also addressed the AGM to update members on the process of lobbying legislation in Scotland. Following the publication of a consultation by the Scottish Government on proposals for a Lobbying Transparency Bill, Mr Duncan said: "APPC Scotland and its members support sensible measures to improve and ensure transparency in the political process. Any statutory register should seek to achieve this aim but in a proportionate manner which does not become overly burdensome on the industry. We also welcome the consultation’s acknowledgement that industry codes, such as the APPC’s code of conduct, are extremely robust and should not be impeded, but complemented, as part of any statutory code that may form part of the Bill."
The AGM also approved unanimously changes to the organisation's Articles, to allow for the first time a member of the Young Consultants' Committee to join the Management Committee with full voting rights.
Chairs:
- Iain Anderson, Chairman APPC
- Peter Duncan, Chairman APPC Scotland
Members of the Management Committee, elected for a one year term, as of June 1st:
- Darren Caplan
- Mark Glover
- Havard Hughes
- Ralph Jackson
- Richard Jukes
- Nicholas Lansman
- Rhoda MacDonald
- George McGregor
Members of the Management Committee who sit in their capacity as former chairs:
- Michael Burrell
- Helen Johnson
- Robbie MacDuff
- Gill Morris
- Warwick Smith
Members of the Young Consultants' Committee elected for a one year term, as of June 1st:
- Joshua Eldridge, Political Intelligence
- Clare Fraser, Cavendish
- Toby Hannam, Incisive Health
- Laura Kennedy, Insight Consulting Group
- James Moseley, Connect
- Matthew Palutikof, GK Strategy
- Simon Richards, FleishmanHillard
- George Robinson, MWW
- Laura Sainsbury, FTI
- Matthew Sutton, Instinctif
- Sarah Ward, Bellenden
- Roisin Watson, Guide PA
- Becca Wright, Interel
- Matthew Young, Lansons