Before I became an MP I didn’t have a huge amount of knowledge about the corporate and business world.
Nor about the ‘extra curricular’ activities that go on around Parliament. I knew there was a perception that MPs drink lots of champagne and that private companies spend a lot of time in Westminster lobbying.
But I’m genuinely surprised by how the corporate lobbying world works.
Perhaps I was naïve, or just normal, but the way things are handled is not something I expected.
I believe that it is reasonable enough for an MP to meet with companies that employ people in our constituencies and in relevant industries. I went to the launch of Oil and Gas UK’s Annual report, for example, which provided me with lots of relevant information about how the oil companies view the state of the industry. I also visited Aberdeen Airport to find out about their expansion plans and First Bus where I passed on queries from constituents about the bus service in Aberdeen.
One of the things that has surprised me in recent times is that a couple of the organisations I have met have brought along someone from a PR company. Presumably to ensure I hear the right message from the company. Surely a company would only pay out for PR support if they think it would give them an edge or a financial advantage? Why is it that this should be required?
I’ve also received lots of emails from people telling me that their product is excellent and that I should consider supporting it and should tell my colleagues about how wonderful it is. I did not expect to have to wade through quite so much spin and nonsense in order to discover what is really worthwhile and what isn’t. And anyway, I’m not involved in any way in the awarding of Government contracts. I don’t have any influence over the planning system, or over tendering processes run by private companies. I have no idea why organisations think it’s worthwhile to lobby me.
The number of (all expenses paid) foreign trips on offer has also been something of a surprise. I don’t have much inclination to travel the globe as I would much rather be in Aberdeen, so I have turned down all suggestions that I jet to Mexico or China or Sri Lanka or the Faroes.
I really expected the realities of Westminster to be much less dodgy than the perception, but it seems there’s plenty of lobbying and pressure from companies, and many more grey areas than I imagined.