Lobbying is a form of advocacy, which lawfully attempts to directly influence legislators or government officials, such as regulatory agencies or judiciary. Lobbying, which usually involves direct, face-to-face contact in cooperation with support staff that may not meet directly face-to-face, is done by many types of people, associations and organized groups, including individuals on a personal level in their capacity as voters, constituents, or private citizens; it is also practiced by corporations in the private sector serving their own business interests; by non-profits and non-governmental organizations in the voluntary sector through advocacy groups to fulfil their mission such as requesting humanitarian aid or grantmaking; and by fellow legislators or government officials influencing each other through legislative affairs in the public sector.
The Scottish Parliament is the devolved, unicameral legislature of Scotland. Located in the Holyrood area of the capital city, Edinburgh, it is frequently referred to by the metonym Holyrood. The Parliament is a democratically elected body comprising 129 members known as Members of the Scottish Parliament (MSPs), elected for five-year terms under the regionalised form of additional member system (MMP): 73 MSPs represent individual geographical constituencies elected by the plurality (first-past-the-post) system, while a further 56 are returned as list members from eight additional member regions. Each region elects seven party-list MSPs. Each region elects 15 to 17 MSPs in total. The most recent general election to the Parliament was held on 6 May 2021, with the Scottish National Party winning a plurality.
The first minister of Scotland, formally known as the First Minister and Keeper of the Scottish Seal, is the head of the Scottish Government and also serves as the keeper of the Great Seal of Scotland whilst in office.
Jack Wilson McConnell, Baron McConnell of Glenscorrodale, is a Scottish politician who served as First Minister of Scotland and Leader of the Labour Party in Scotland from 2001 to 2007. McConnell served as the Minister for Finance from 1999 to 2000 and Minister for Education, Europe and External Affairs from 2000 to 2001. He has been a Labour life peer in the House of Lords since 2010 and previously served as a Member of the Scottish Parliament (MSP) for Motherwell and Wishaw from 1999 to 2011.
In the United Kingdom, the Electoral Commission is the national election commission, created in 2001 as a result of the Political Parties, Elections and Referendums Act 2000. It is an independent agency that regulates party and election finance and sets standards for how elections should be run.
Nick Bolkus is a former Australian Labor Party politician. He was a member of the Senate from July 1981 to June 2005, representing the state of South Australia.
Norman Reginald Warner, Baron Warner,, is a British former civil servant and member of the House of Lords. A career civil servant from 1960, he was created a life peer in 1998. He was Parliamentary Under-Secretary in the Department of Health from 2003 to 2007, and Minister of State at the Department of Health from 2005 to 2007. He has also been an adviser to a number of consulting companies. In October 2015, Warner resigned the Labour whip and became a non-affiliated and then crossbench member of the House of Lords, serving until his retirement in 2024.
Members of the Scottish Parliament (MSPs) are entitled to a salary, and where applicable, expenses and allowances.
Joseph Martin FitzPatrick is a Scottish politician who most recently served as Minister for Local Government Empowerment and Planning from March 2023 to May 2024. A member of the Scottish National Party (SNP), he has been the Member of the Scottish Parliament (MSP) for Dundee City West since the 2007. Prior to his most recent Ministerial appointment, he was Convener of the Scottish Parliament's Equalities, Human Rights and Civil Justice Committee. He served as Minister for Public Health, Sport and Wellbeing from 2018 to until his resignation in 2020. He also served as Minister for Parliamentary Business from 2012 to 2018.
David Whitton is a Scottish journalist, Labour Party politician and former Member of the Scottish Parliament (MSP). He was elected to the Scottish Parliament for Strathkelvin and Bearsden in 2007, defeating the incumbent Independent MSP Jean Turner, and losing the seat at the 2011 election to Fiona McLeod of the Scottish National Party.
In politics, a revolving door can refer to two distinct phenomena.
A special adviser, also known as a spad, is a temporary civil servant who advises and assists UK government ministers or ministers in the Scottish and Welsh devolved governments. They differ from impartial civil servants in that they are political appointees.
Lobbying in the United Kingdom plays a significant role in the formation of legislation and a wide variety of commercial organisations, lobby groups "lobby" for particular policies and decisions by Parliament and other political organs at national, regional and local levels.
Thomas Docherty is a British Labour Party politician who served as Member of Parliament (MP) for Dunfermline and West Fife from 2010 until 2015.
The Organisation of Scottish Labour is a body established under the national rules of the UK Labour Party.
A Lobby Registry, also named Lobbyist Registry, Register for Lobby Transparency or Registry of Lobbyists is a public database, in which information about lobbying actors and key data about their actions can be accessed.
The commissioner for ethical standards in public life in Scotland is an independent commissioner in Scotland with the responsibility for investigating complaints about Members of the Scottish Parliament, councillors of the 32 Councils of Scotland, and board members of Scottish public bodies. The commissioner also monitors the appointment of members of specified public bodies in Scotland by the Scottish Ministers.
The Scottish Land Commission was established by the Scottish Government following the passage of the Land Reform (Scotland) Act 2016 by the Scottish Parliament; the Commission also incorporates the work of the Tenant Farming Commissioner. The Lands Commissioners, who constitute the Commission, have functions relating to land in Scotland, so that they address issues which relate to ownership of land, land rights, management of land, and use of land. The Tenant Farming Commissioner has the aim of improving the relationship between tenant farmers and land owners, and can create codes of practice, provide practical guidance, and must consult on such matters. The Tenant Farming Commissioner cannot be an agricultural landlord or agricultural tenant, and will develop codes of practice which are in addition to the law and the jurisdiction of the Scottish Land Court.
Emma Roddick is a Scottish National Party (SNP) politician. Emma served as the Minister for Equalities, Migration and Refugees between 2023 and 2024; stepping down when John Swinney was appointed first minister She has been a Member of the Scottish Parliament (MSP) for Highlands and Islands since May 2021.
Douglas Aaron Lumsden is a Scottish Conservative Party politician. He has been a Member of the Scottish Parliament (MSP) for the North East Scotland region since the election in May 2021. He was previously the co-leader of Aberdeen City Council.
