Newly-installed Cabinet Office minister Angela Smith said the Government hoped to make an announcement on lobbying before the summer recess, which gets under way on 21 July.
 
She told the public administration select committee this morning: ‘I’d like to get the response to you as soon as possible. I would aim for before the recess…. I really want to get it out before the recess.’
 
The select committee called for a mandatory register of lobbyists in a report earlier this year. The Government’s response was due in March – but it has still not emerged.
 
Smith has replaced Tom Watson as the minster responsible for the Government’s stance on lobbying.
 
Also giving evidence at the one-off select committee hearing this morning was Alliance for Lobbying Transparency coordinator Tamasin Cave and representatives of the lobbying industry from the CIPR, PRCA and Association of Professional Political Consultants (APPC).