Last week Green Party MP Siân Berry released a full log of her first year of official meetings with campaigners, unions, community groups, businesses and other lobbyists and is challenging all other MPs to do the same. The three other Green MPs are set to follow suit shortly.
Siân is pressing Nigel Farage to ‘come clean’, given Reform UK’s links to and funding from the fossil fuel industry. The Party has reportedly received more than £2.3 million from oil and gas interests, highly polluting industries, and climate science deniers since 2019.
Siân Berry MP said:
“This move shows Greens are at the forefront of cleaning up politics through openness and transparency – this is an important part of following the Nolan principles of public life.
“I hope every MP will follow suit and join me in publishing records of the campaigns and lobbyists they meet for everyone to see. In particular, I challenge Nigel Farage to come clean so we can all see the extent of corporate and fossil fuel lobbying on the work of Reform UK’s elected representatives.”
The call for greater transparency comes as David Lammy stands accused of a conflict of interest and improper influence after a plan emerged to invite staff from oil giant Shell and the defence firm BAE Systems to work inside the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office.
Responding, Siân said:
“This move potentially places corporate lobbyists at the heart of Government where there is a risk they will have undue influence on international policy. These two corporations both have highly blemished records when it comes to human rights, and in the case of Shell, the company has weakened its emissions targets, moved away from renewables and is ramping up fossil fuel extraction. This is in sharp contrast to the Government’s stated aim of a green transition.”