Labour announces today it will repeal the controversial and illiberal Lobbying Act if the party wins the next election.

The ill-conceived legislation - dubbed the ‘gagging law’ by campaigners - will be replaced by real reform of the lobbying industry and moves to ensure transparency in elections and to protect freedom of speech.

Angela Eagle, Labour’s Shadow Leader of the Commons, said the party would scrap the Act, replace it with a universal register of all professional lobbyists backed by a code of conduct and sanctions, and consult with charities and campaigners about the reforms that are needed.

Angela Eagle said:

“The Tory-led Government’s gagging law is an illiberal attack on our democracy.

“It was cooked up in a shabby deal between David Cameron and Nick Clegg. It lets vested interests off the hook, and it gags charities and grassroots campaigners who want to hold the Government to account for their broken promises at the next election.

“Labour will repeal the Act and will instead legislate for the reform that our politics needs.

“In the next parliament, we will introduce a universal register of all professional lobbyists backed by a code of conduct and sanctions.
“We will do what Cameron and Clegg didn’t - and consult with charities and campaigners about how to ensure transparency in our elections while protecting freedom of speech.”

Real Reform of the Lobbying Industry

The lobbying reforms in the Lobbying Act are so weak that they essentially amount to a charter for lobbyists, and there is a very real danger that they might make a bad situation worse. They have achieved the feat of uniting both lobbyists and campaigners for lobbying transparency against them.

Labour will make the lobbying industry more transparent by introducing a universal register of all professional lobbyists backed by a code of conduct and sanctions. Labour will implement those changes in the legislation to repeal the Act in the next Parliament.

Lifting the Gag on Charities and Campaigners

Labour fiercely opposed Ministers’ attempts to gag charities and campaigners because - unlike this Government - we recognise the important contribution of civic society to a healthy democracy. We will consult widely about the reforms our politics needs to ensure transparency and a thriving democratic debate. We will work closely with the broad coalition that formed in opposition to the Bill, which included groups as disparate as the Taxpayers Alliance, the Royal British Legion, 38 Degrees and Friends of the Earth.