THE Federal Government's new code of conduct for political lobbyists is timid, narrow and will leave the public in the dark about most lobbying activity, a political science academic has said.
Professor John Warhurst, from the Australian National University, has told a Senate committee that the code excludes too many major players in the lobbying game from its requirements to disclose details of their activities.
The Senate's finance and public administration committee will conduct hearings today on whether the code should be extended to cover not only firms lobbying for clients but other people and groups who try to influence politicians.
The Government adopted the code, which regulates contact between ministers and senior public servants and professional lobbying firms, last month. It requires firms lobbying on behalf of third-party clients to disclose their details on a public register and to follow ethical standards in return for being granted access to federal ministers, ministerial staff and public servants.
But the new regime does not cover unions, industry associations, churches and charities or corporate executives who are free to access senior government figures without having to disclose their details or comply with the ethical standard.
The code has come under fire from the Community and Public Sector Union which says its members, including ministerial staffers, are concerned about employment opportunities being "severely curtailed".
The 12-month ban on ministerial staffers taking private sector jobs in areas related to the portfolio they have left was being imposed without staffers' knowledge or agreement at the time they took the government job, the union says.
"The Lobbying Code of Conduct as it stands changes the employment conditions of ministerial advisors retrospectively, without individual agreement and in the absence of increased remuneration," the union says.
In his submission to the committee Professor Warhurst said that third-party lobbyists were only one element of the lobbying industry.
"They are technicians, like lawyers and accountants, who perform a fee for service," he said. "So a code of conduct that excludes many of the bigger players in the industry who lobby on their own behalf, like the Business Council of Australia, the Australian Medical Association, the Australian Conservation Foundation and so on, offers only very partial coverage.
"Whether the aim of the exercise is a more ethical industry, or transparency in government, or an even playing field in policy-making and politics, a limited scheme runs the risk of being set up to fail."
The code requires lobbyists to tell the truth when pushing their clients' views and not to make exaggerated claims about their access to government ministers.