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A number of former politicians who are now paid to influence policy-making have visited parliamentary property, but deny that they did so for lobbying...
Former MPs working for lobbying firms have exploited their ongoing access to Parliament on hundreds of occasions, with campaigners claiming there is a "high risk" it has been misused by some.
Politicians who lose their seats can hold a pass that gives them unlimited access to parliamentary property, influencing policymakers on behalf of private clients.
Freedom of Information revelations to The Times show that former MPs listed as employees of companies on the register of consulting lobbyists, or employees of companies that explicitly provide lobbying services, visited parliament on at least 373 occasions after last year's election using these passes.
Former MPs are prohibited from using their privileged access for lobbying.
One of the leading lobbying associations, the Public Relations and Communications Association (PRCA), banned its members from holding parliamentary passes to avoid a conflict of interest. In 2021, the PRCA told a parliamentary inquiry that “we believe it is simply wrong for a lobbyist to hold a parliamentary pass.”
The two most regular users of their parliamentary passes were Anne-Marie Trevelyan, a former cabinet minister, and Nigel Evans, a former deputy speaker of Parliament. Both joined lobbying firm Fullbrook Strategies after losing their seats in the 2024 election.
The firm is owned by Mark Fullbrook, who was Liz Truss's chief of staff and a professional lobbyist who previously worked for another Conservative-linked lobbying group, CT Group.
Trevelyan used her leave 55 times in the year following the July 2024 election, while Evans used his on 47 occasions. She denied lobbying on any occasion, claiming she used the leave to visit the parliamentary hairdresser and "for a cup of tea with old colleagues".
Evans also denied using his permit for lobbying.
The company's clients have previously included a branch of the LetterOne group, a London-based investment group founded by sanctioned Russian oligarchs Mikhail Fridman and Petr Aven.
Other clients have included Imperial Tobacco; Sig Sauer, a German arms company; a consultancy firm linked to a campaign for the UK to recognise the separatist Turkish government of Northern Cyprus; and one of the factions fighting in the Libyan civil war.
Jake Berry, a former cabinet minister and general counsel at Fullbrook, used his pass on four occasions, while Damien Moore, a former Conservative Party member and senior adviser at the company, used his pass 32 times.
Moore said on LinkedIn that his role at the company involved "engaging with ministers, advisors and members of Parliament, as well as other key stakeholders, to deliver the best outcomes for the client."
Fullbrook Strategies said it did not allow its staff to lobby on its behalf using their parliamentary passes.
Other lobbying firms also had staff who used their access repeatedly, including Ian Liddell-Grainger, the chairman of Sovereign Strategy, who used his pass on 28 occasions. The firm's previous clients include Novartis, the Swiss pharmaceutical company, and Bloomberg.
Andrew Stephenson, who co-founded the lobbying firm Polaris Partners after his election loss, used his leave 11 times.
His firm offers "opportunities to interact with senior political figures" through "dinners with MPs" and "exclusive meetings", but Stephenson denied that using his permission breached lobbying rules and said he was restricted from lobbying as a former minister.
Susan Hawley, executive director of Spotlight on Corruption, said there should be a complete ban on former members holding permits. "Ultimately, the risks of abuse will always be high and difficult to control," she said.
"The Parliamentary Standards Commissioner should exercise effective oversight to ensure that this privileged access is not abused and ensure that meaningful sanctions are imposed on former members who do so."
Rose Whiffen, a senior research officer at Transparency International UK, said parliamentary authorities needed to ensure that former members' leave was being used correctly.
"When more than half of the most frequent users of residence permits now work for lobbying firms or private consultancies, it is difficult to suggest that none of the 373 visits had anything to do with their commercial interests," she said.
A House of Commons spokesman said that “as with all applications for leave to remain, the right to remain is rigorously reviewed and there are processes in place to ensure that applications can only be made by those with an approved application.
“There are restrictions on the facilities that former members can use within parliament and they are prohibited from using their residence permit in connection with lobbying activity.” /Adapted from The Times/
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