Difference between revisions of "Holyrood Strategy Scotland"

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Holyrood Strategy Scotland was a lobbying firm set up in 1998 to try to take advantage of the creation of the Scottish Parliament in 1999. The company did not survive the first blush of lobbying growth in Scotland and was dissolved on 11 January 2006.<ref>Companies House, Dissolved SC187715 Holyrood Strategy (Scotland) Limited, 11 January 2006</ref>
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Holyrood Strategy Scotland was a lobbying firm set up in 1998 to try to take advantage of the creation of the Scottish Parliament in 1999.  
  
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The company was dissolved on 11 January 2006.<ref>Companies House, Dissolved SC187715 Holyrood Strategy (Scotland) Limited, 11 January 2006</ref> However, former director [[Mark Whittet]] registered a company with the same name on 6 August 2015.
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==Background==
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From news reports in 1998:
 
:Holyrood Strategy was launched with aplomb at Edinburgh's [[New Club]] earlier this month by the venerable [[Lord Fraser of Carmyllie]]. Unfortunately, it had already lost one director and risks losing another from its complement of four. [[Michael Kelly]], the erstwhile chief executive and former Lord Provost of Glasgow, said cryptically: "It was pencilled in that I was a director, but I wasn't actually a director." Anyway, Mr Kelly (alias Miles Better from his time as Lord Provost) abandoned ship because of the "perceived conflict of interest" between a lobby job and an ambition to be a member of the Scottish parliament. [[Mark Whittet]], another director of Holyrood Strategy and a press officer at [[British Energy]], is thought to have been contemplating a similar move, though neither he nor Holyrood Strategy nor his present employer would comment.<ref>The Scotsman July 25, 1998, Saturday BUSINESS DIARY BYLINE: Louise Nevill SECTION: Pg. 25</ref>
 
:Holyrood Strategy was launched with aplomb at Edinburgh's [[New Club]] earlier this month by the venerable [[Lord Fraser of Carmyllie]]. Unfortunately, it had already lost one director and risks losing another from its complement of four. [[Michael Kelly]], the erstwhile chief executive and former Lord Provost of Glasgow, said cryptically: "It was pencilled in that I was a director, but I wasn't actually a director." Anyway, Mr Kelly (alias Miles Better from his time as Lord Provost) abandoned ship because of the "perceived conflict of interest" between a lobby job and an ambition to be a member of the Scottish parliament. [[Mark Whittet]], another director of Holyrood Strategy and a press officer at [[British Energy]], is thought to have been contemplating a similar move, though neither he nor Holyrood Strategy nor his present employer would comment.<ref>The Scotsman July 25, 1998, Saturday BUSINESS DIARY BYLINE: Louise Nevill SECTION: Pg. 25</ref>
  
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:The agency's other directors are Lord Fraser, the Conservative Party's deputy leader in the House of Lords, [[Charles Brodie]], a Liberal Democrat councillor and director of software company [[Twinsoft]], and [[Mark Whittet]], executive director of news events planner [[MacNews]], which will be integrated within Holyrood Strategy. The agency does not have any clients as yet.<ref>PR Week BYLINE: By SOPHIE BARKER July 17, 1998</ref>
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:The agency's other directors are [[Lord Fraser]], the Conservative Party's deputy leader in the House of Lords, [[Charles Brodie]], a Liberal Democrat councillor and director of software company [[Twinsoft]], and [[Mark Whittet]], executive director of news events planner [[MacNews]], which will be integrated within Holyrood Strategy. The agency does not have any clients as yet.<ref>PR Week BYLINE: By SOPHIE BARKER July 17, 1998</ref>
  
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==FoI consultation response==
 
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:Holyrood Strategy asked for the public and diary engagements of Scottish Ministers to be published each week listing in advance the schedule of forthcoming meetings.<ref> Scottish Executive [http://www.cfoi.org.uk/pdf/scotrespsummary.pdf SUMMARY OF RESPONSES TO THE CONSULTATION PAPER "AN OPEN SCOTLAND: FREEDOM OF INFORMATION, A CONSULTATION"]</ref>
 
 
==People==
 
==People==
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[[Mark Whittet]], director; founding member of the Association for Scottish Public Affairs; former Director and Deputy Convenor of the [[Scottish Legal Action Group]].<ref>[http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/S4_StandardsProceduresandPublicAppointmentsCommittee/Inquiries/Whittet_Mark.pdf Mark Whittett], submission to the Standards Committee inquiry into lobbying</ref> In a recent submission to the Standards Committee inquiry into lobbying, Whittet wrote the following to support his case that Scotland does not need to regulate lobbyists:
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:Put simply, the position in principle is that it takes two parties for there to be 'a problem' with lobbying.
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:If the lobbyee (eg Mps) acts fully and ethically (by not touting for bribes – already illegal; or procuring some preferment for one party or another – also already illegal) there can be no illegality or 'problem' with lobbying, or at least certainly not one caused by the lobby-er/ lobbyist.
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:Put logically, it is ineffectual and wasteful use of resources to prohibit men from paying for sex for women when even the Bible accepts that paid-for sex (however morally bad or undesirable some sections of society think it is) like taxes, will always be with us.
  
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:By the same analogy, it is ineffectual and wasteful use of (expensive, taxpayer- funded) resources to create an entirely unnecessary enforcement / regulatory regime which applies only to lobbyists (a comprehensive term which logic requires be widely interpreted to include any and all 'communications with MPs intended to have legislative effect, whether done collectively, corporately, private, individually, for remuneration, or not, and for payment/ benefit in kind, or not) if the rules apply to only one party (the 'lobbyist') in the 'transaction' or 'political intercourse'.'<ref>[http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/S4_StandardsProceduresandPublicAppointmentsCommittee/Inquiries/Whittet_Mark.pdf Mark Whittett], submission to the Standards Committee inquiry into lobbying</ref>
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==Former employees==
 
*[[Charles Brodie]]
 
*[[Charles Brodie]]
 
*[[Julia Clarke]]
 
*[[Julia Clarke]]
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*[[Peter Fraser]]
 
*[[Peter Fraser]]
 
*[[James Sempill]]
 
*[[James Sempill]]
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*[[Mark Whittet]] Director from 29 May 2000<ref>288a Appointment of director or secretary, SC187715 Holyrood Strategy (Scotland) Limited, dated 29 May 2000</ref> until 25 September 2000<ref>288b Terminating appointment as director or secretary, SC187715 Holyrood Strategy (Scotland) Limited, dated 5 November 2001</ref>
 
 
*[[Michael Kelly]], former Chief Executive, resigned shortly after launch in 1998 <ref>[http://www.brandrepublic.com/login/News/96915/ Kelly quits lobbying for a political career]
 
*[[Michael Kelly]], former Chief Executive, resigned shortly after launch in 1998 <ref>[http://www.brandrepublic.com/login/News/96915/ Kelly quits lobbying for a political career]
 
by SOPHIE BARKER ''PR Week'' UK 17-Jul-98 </ref>
 
by SOPHIE BARKER ''PR Week'' UK 17-Jul-98 </ref>
  
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==Location==
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==Contacts==
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*15 [[Atholl Crescent]], Edinburgh EH3 8HA - the same address as [[Brodies WS]] which acted as the contact address<ref>363 Annual Return Holyurood Strategy (Scotland) Limited, SC187715, to 16 July 2000</ref>
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:Address: Q Court, 3 Quality Street, Edinburgh, Scotland, EH4 5BP
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(registered office with Companies House, as of August 2015):
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==Notes==
 
==Notes==
 
<references/>
 
<references/>
 
[[Category:Scottish lobbying firms]][[Category:Lobbying firms]]
 
[[Category:Scottish lobbying firms]][[Category:Lobbying firms]]

Latest revision as of 14:48, 4 September 2015

Holyrood Strategy Scotland was a lobbying firm set up in 1998 to try to take advantage of the creation of the Scottish Parliament in 1999.

The company was dissolved on 11 January 2006.[1] However, former director Mark Whittet registered a company with the same name on 6 August 2015.

Background

From news reports in 1998:

Holyrood Strategy was launched with aplomb at Edinburgh's New Club earlier this month by the venerable Lord Fraser of Carmyllie. Unfortunately, it had already lost one director and risks losing another from its complement of four. Michael Kelly, the erstwhile chief executive and former Lord Provost of Glasgow, said cryptically: "It was pencilled in that I was a director, but I wasn't actually a director." Anyway, Mr Kelly (alias Miles Better from his time as Lord Provost) abandoned ship because of the "perceived conflict of interest" between a lobby job and an ambition to be a member of the Scottish parliament. Mark Whittet, another director of Holyrood Strategy and a press officer at British Energy, is thought to have been contemplating a similar move, though neither he nor Holyrood Strategy nor his present employer would comment.[2]
The agency's other directors are Lord Fraser, the Conservative Party's deputy leader in the House of Lords, Charles Brodie, a Liberal Democrat councillor and director of software company Twinsoft, and Mark Whittet, executive director of news events planner MacNews, which will be integrated within Holyrood Strategy. The agency does not have any clients as yet.[3]

People

Mark Whittet, director; founding member of the Association for Scottish Public Affairs; former Director and Deputy Convenor of the Scottish Legal Action Group.[4] In a recent submission to the Standards Committee inquiry into lobbying, Whittet wrote the following to support his case that Scotland does not need to regulate lobbyists:

Put simply, the position in principle is that it takes two parties for there to be 'a problem' with lobbying.
If the lobbyee (eg Mps) acts fully and ethically (by not touting for bribes – already illegal; or procuring some preferment for one party or another – also already illegal) there can be no illegality or 'problem' with lobbying, or at least certainly not one caused by the lobby-er/ lobbyist.
Put logically, it is ineffectual and wasteful use of resources to prohibit men from paying for sex for women when even the Bible accepts that paid-for sex (however morally bad or undesirable some sections of society think it is) like taxes, will always be with us.
By the same analogy, it is ineffectual and wasteful use of (expensive, taxpayer- funded) resources to create an entirely unnecessary enforcement / regulatory regime which applies only to lobbyists (a comprehensive term which logic requires be widely interpreted to include any and all 'communications with MPs intended to have legislative effect, whether done collectively, corporately, private, individually, for remuneration, or not, and for payment/ benefit in kind, or not) if the rules apply to only one party (the 'lobbyist') in the 'transaction' or 'political intercourse'.'[5]

Former employees

Contacts

Address: Q Court, 3 Quality Street, Edinburgh, Scotland, EH4 5BP

(registered office with Companies House, as of August 2015):

Notes

  1. ↑ Companies House, Dissolved SC187715 Holyrood Strategy (Scotland) Limited, 11 January 2006
  2. ↑ The Scotsman July 25, 1998, Saturday BUSINESS DIARY BYLINE: Louise Nevill SECTION: Pg. 25
  3. ↑ PR Week BYLINE: By SOPHIE BARKER July 17, 1998
  4. ↑ Mark Whittett, submission to the Standards Committee inquiry into lobbying
  5. ↑ Mark Whittett, submission to the Standards Committee inquiry into lobbying
  6. ↑ Kelly quits lobbying for a political career by SOPHIE BARKER PR Week UK 17-Jul-98
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