Foresight Communications

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Foresight Communications is a London-based lobbying firm.

Foresight's office in London's Theatre-land

Political connections

For a small boutique agency, Foresight has numerous connections with the world of politics. [1]

  • Mark Adams. Foresight was run by Mark Adams OBE, who was a private secretary for parliamentary affairs at No. 10 for nearly four years. He also worked as private secretary to Tony Blair for six months after the 1997 election. [2]

Other members of Foresight's team include:

Employing ministers

  • Ivor Caplin, a former defence minister, also works for Foresight.

The Sunday Times reported in June 2006:

"A former defence minister has been criticised by a Whitehall vetting committee for accepting a job as a defence industry lobbyist without seeking official permission. Ivor Caplin, who stood down at the last election, has taken lobbying jobs with two companies — Foresight Communications and MBDA Missile Systems — in breach of the ministerial code.
Foresight, run by Mark Adams, Tony Blair’s former private secretary, represents the £20 billion Eurofighter jet project and MBDA is an American missile company.
Former ministers are expected to inform Whitehall’s Advisory Committee on Business Appointments before accepting such employment offers. Section 5.29 of the ministerial code states: “On leaving office, ministers should seek advice from the . . . committee . . . about any appointments they wish to take up within two years of leaving office.”
The committee has criticised Caplin for accepting the appointments without seeking its advice... The committee, which was set up by John Major, the former Tory prime minister, and is now chaired by Lord Mayhew, has now demanded that Caplin does not “become personally involved in lobbying ministers or officials for 12 months”. [4]

Former staff

Launching front groups

In 2001, Foresight helped launch the corporate front group the Scientific Alliance with Robert Durward.[5] The original contact for the Alliance is Robert Durward who is also the director of Foresight client the British Aggregates Association (BAA). [6] [7]

Foresight's other clients include the New Party for Britain (also known as the People's Alliance). The New Party is so right-wing that the Tory leader in Scotland, where it operates, called it 'fascist and undemocratic'. Like the Scientific Alliance, this 'People's Alliance' was established by Durward and Adams.[8]

Scientific Alliance

The Scientific Alliance is anti-environmental, anti-organic and pro-GM. It is also pro-nuclear and dismisses manmade climate change. [9] [10]

It runs conferences along with other corporate front groups. In November 2002 it organised a conference on GM called Fields of the Future. The conference chairman was Lord Dick Taverne of the front organisation Sense about Science, and Tracey Brown of Sense about Science helped to find speakers for the event. This is yet another corporate front organisation.

Pro nuclear activities

Foresight counts the Nuclear Industry Association as a client. And at the 2004 Labour Party Conference the Scientific Alliance held a pro-nuclear meeting with the Nuclear Industry Association. [11]

Advisory board

The Scientific Alliance's Advisory Board includes:

Both Wilson and Moses are part of Sense About Science

Clients

Lobbying clients of Foresight listed in 2009:[13] BT | CSC | EADS | Elliott Advisors | Healthcare 360 | IIDC | Macquarie Airports | Nuclear Industry Association | Parsons Brinckerhoff | Spirit Aerosystems | Stringfellow Restaurants | Summerleaze | World Economy and Finance Programme | Zed Homes.

Previous clients

Past clients include:[14] Association of British Insurers | Beatbullying | British Aggregates Association | Business Services Association | Cheetah Medical Inc | Citizen Communication | East England Arts | EcoGen Developments | EDS | Elmo-Tech | Energis | Lufthansa Technik | New Party for Britain / People's Alliance | Nord Anglia | Perfiliate Technologies | Scientific Alliance | Sodexho | Summerleaze | Thames Water | Unimatic Engineers | EADS

Contacts

130 Shaftesbury Avenue, London, W1D 5 EU
http://www.foresight-consulting.co.uk

External Resources

References

  1. ↑ Foresight Communications - 'People', undated, accessed March 2006.
  2. ↑ Foresight Communications - 'About us' and 'People - Mark Adams', undated, accessed March 2006.
  3. ↑ Foresight website, accessed Feb 2009
  4. ↑ Robert Winnet, Ex-minister ignored rule and took job as lobbyist The Sunday Times, 4 June 2006.
  5. ↑ Gethin Chamberlain, "The rich recluse masterminding Britain's new party". The Scotsman, 22 January 2003.
  6. ↑ Foresight Communications - 'Clients', undated, accessed March 2006.
  7. ↑ Andrew Rowell, 'Hard rockers', The Guardian, 11 July 2001.
  8. ↑ Gethin Chamberlain, The rich recluse masterminding Britain's new party, The Scotsman, 22 Jan 2003, accessed 20 Mar 2010
  9. ↑ Hamish Macdonell, 'Mystery party to contest elections', The Scotsman, 13 January 2003.
  10. ↑ Ollie Stone-Lee, 'New party pledges direct democracy', BBC News website, 14 March 2003.
  11. ↑ K. Parker Email Re: Agreement with Scientific Alliance (pdf), 28 July 2004.
  12. ↑ Scientific Alliance advisory board, undated, accessed March 2006.
  13. ↑ APPC register, to Nov 2008
  14. ↑ Foresight Communications - 'Clients', undated, accessed March 2006.

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