Rónán Mullen (Independent)

I am very glad the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform, Deputy Brendan Howlin, has published the 60 submissions received during the public consultation processes on regulatory system options for lobbying. It strikes me this morning that perhaps the Spanish have better lobbyists at EU level than we do, unless Commissioner Rehn's "No" for now is just a gateway to a greater "Yes" later. He would want to be mindful of the time because people are watching those kinds of responses from our European colleagues and will do so with great care in the run-up to the referendum on the fiscal compact treaty.

On the subject of lobbying, there was an interesting submission from the Public Relations Consultants Association of Ireland, which indicated there may be occasions when individuals and organisations want to gain contact with officials or politicians at a high level on a discreet basis in the national interest. That may start alarm bells in some people's minds but transparency should always be a key requirement where lobbyists interact with the political system and decision makers. An example is given of where a foreign direct investor may want discreet contact about a possible decision to select Ireland over another country for a project. Although that sounds reasonable, we need to be careful of self-serving arguments in favour of an unregulated lobbying system.

It would be helpful for the Minister to come to the House, tease out the issue and hear from us of the many complexities which exist around lobbying, particularly how one defines a lobbyist and what is appropriate contact between lobbyists and politicians. I see it has been proposed, for example, that politicians and public servants should have a two-year cooling off period after leaving office before being allowed to interact with the public service on behalf of organisations where lobbying is involved.