Further information and links to accompany this 38 Degrees 'CAMPAIGNS BY YOU' petition to

The Fracking Web of Power Click thumbnail to enlarge (as pdf):   pdf document supporting the infographic   LINK to a NATIONAL PETITION  to  stop the likes of Lord Browne influencing government policy WDM - World Development Movement - has developed an interactive version of the fracking web of power: Click thumbnail to see and use it, or click www.wdm.org.uk/fracking/index.html The above is a useful addition to WDM's excellent Fossil Fuel Web of Power infographic.

The Fracking Web of Power and an idea to tackle it, supported by local and national petitions <<< INFOGRAPHIC showing the pervasive embedding of fossil fuel interests within Government, focussing on fracking  Link to a pdf with further information on: 'INTERNAL LOBBYING' (within-government lobbying) -  Corruption of government by FRACKING interests, and how we can stop this: a new proposed amendment to the Lobbying bill (aka "gagging bill") to outlaw 'internal lobbying' - pdf.        NB: this pdf also has summaries of other areas of conflicts of interest within government such as those listed below the title of this web-page. NB: The Lobbying bill as it now stands is unacceptable - rightly described as the "gagging bill", as it potentially gags the good guys but is little more than a sham against the lobbying malpractices of big vested interests. Unless it is significantly changed it should be voted against (no Faustian Pacts or compromises), and re-written to be effective against the powerful vested/corporate interests. We do need a lobbying bill (e.g. to prevent the UK getting more like the USA - in which big money buys influence). We should demand how we want it to be. We must insist that any lobbying bill must tackle the internal within-government lobbying as well as the unacceptable aspects of external lobbying (while of course ensuring that there is no collateral impact on the good guys). How about modifying this local (Westmorland and Lonsdale consituency) petition for your MP?     NB: I am well aware of the danger that LibDem MPs, in trying to gain beneficial improvements to bills, can wrongly do so by agreeing to unacceptable compromises or "Faustian pacts"s with their coalition partners, and then try and "reassure" us that the latter are now safe. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Also sign this petition: by Young Friends of the Earth: 'We call on Lord Browne to resign from his position in the Cabinet Office due to his vested interests in profiting from fracking and the conflict of interest this causes' Re 'internal lobbying' by Lord Browne: Cuadrilla boss continues lobbying from inside government 26aug13 Frack Off Cuadrilla boss in new lobbying scandal 25jul13 Frack Off - refers and links to DECC 16apr13 response to FOI request by Caroline Lucas: lordbrownemtgs (pdf)   Fracking in the UK: FOI’s show Lord Browne intervened to try and water down environmental regulations for Cuadrilla Damian Kahya 19aug13 ENERGYDESK Greenpeace UK

Via NS Pugh, but creator?

The 38 Degrees 'CAMPAIGNS BY YOU' petition to OUTLAW CONFLICTS OF INTEREST WITHIN GOVERNMENT

Petition by Young Friends of The Earth: 'We call on Lord Browne to resign from his position in the Cabinet Office due to his vested interests in profiting from fracking and the conflict of interest this causes'

The pdf HERE is an evolving document (with reference links) that gives more depth and breadth of information on the variety of unacceptable conflicts of interest within government which provide scope for undemocratic 'internal lobbying'. But first read the text below this links section.

IGNORE this for now as couldn't be updated due to HDD failure: My web-page on the 'Lobbing Bill' aka "gagging bill" as the latter more correctly describes its present state LobbyingBill.html

Fracking web of power infographic usable as a poster: http://www.dragonfly1.plus.com/NexusForFrackingA4.pdf

WDM Fossil Fuel Web of Power interactive infographic: http://www.wdm.org.uk/carbon-capital/nexus 
"Fossil fuel web of power - the links between UK government ministers and companies fueling climate change - World Development Movement"

Url for section on my main fracking web-page for information and action against fracking web of power: http://www.dragonfly1.plus.com/FRACKING.html#action

2. FOSSIL FUEL interests and CLIMATE CHANGE

The embedding of fossil fuels interests within the UK government, which is pervasive through many of its departments, is one of the main obstructive forces to action on climate change by the UK. This is shown well by WDM’s infographic ‘THE FOSSIL FUEL WEB OF POWER’ (see thumbnail to left), which reveals that “a third of UK government ministers are embroiled in a web of influence” with the fossil fuel industry and the finance sector which bankrolls it, and consequently also “bank-rolling climate change”. Also “executives at big finance and energy firms are often appointed to serve on government committees or regulatory bodies.”

Caroline Lucas MP revealed that at least 50 employees of energy/gas/oil companies are working within government.

We thus have both ‘internal lobbying’ as well as the more widely debated external lobbying. The “lobbying bill” aka “gagging bill” for its dangerous Part 2, pretends to regulate external lobbying but does not even address internal lobbying (the “elephant in the room”).

The finance sector (which pays half of the Tory Party’s funds) is gambling on there being no effective major climate change legislation in the foreseeable future, because if there was - it would make worthless much of their fossil fuel investments, because we will have to leave 75 to 80% of fossil fuel reserves in the ground to have any fair chance of keeping the global temperature rise below the 2^oC.threshold agreed in the Copenhagen climate summit. Our present trajectory is heading nearer to a disastrous 4^oC rise. This desire to maintain and even inflate what has become “the carbon bubble” explains some of the motives behind the inertia claw-hold on and in government by the fossil fuel web of power and why it is so against the interests of the majority of us and especially our children.

The result of the above is that the UK government, despite its occasional rhetoric of concern for the climate, is actually strongly pushing forward for investment into the most extreme high emissions and/or high risk forms of fossil fuel extraction, such as from fracking, deep-sea arctic drilling, and “dirtier oils” such as from tar sands. Even recent NERC funding is for research into these methods to help the oil industry. Also it has been trying to delay implementation of EU climate change legislation or dilute it to a mere ineffective pretence, e.g. in the Fuel Quality Directive - to limit dirty oil such as from tar sands.

Furthermore, Osborne claims the UK has already done more than its fair share in reducing emissions, but in saying that disregards the emissions UK brings about abroad, and the fact that the City of London (“The Carbon Capital” of WDM) is a major, or the biggest (in money terms), global centre for investment into fossil fuels, a fact that he also works hard to protect by trying to disable any proposed EU climate legislation that might threaten it.

Why it is bad for us to have the Big Six and fossil fuel industry embedded in our Government is also portrayed well here:
James O'Nions of WDM wrote a very powerful piece in red pepper showing why and how we need community democratic power over power, not corporate power over power: 'Editorial: All power to the community' - "rewiring the economy for energy democracy"

3. OTHER CONFLICTS OF INTEREST:

THE BIG FOUR: The embedding of the Big Four multi-national accountancy firms within government - more specifically within The Treasury / HMRC with ‘revolving door’ secondments/assignments is resulting in the legalization rather than blocking, of former loop-holes for tax-dodging by big companies and the wealthy, and the creation of new tax-dodging mechanisms for multinationals including ways to make easier their use of tax havens. These four firms have an enormous income from advising big corporations and wealthy people on tax avoidance, and their role in this is a very important part of the tax avoidance system not just in the UK but globally. The consequence of this loss of revenue from the wealthy is increased cuts for the poor and an uneven playing field for the disadvantaged SMEs who usually cannot take advantage of these tax breaks.

NHS: The government push for PRIVATIZATION of the NHS despite an election-time promise of no major re-organization is associated with MPs who have invested in private health companies who stand to gain from the privatization. They should have been denied any voting or influence in or on government on these proposals. 
REF: What is the evidence that Cabinet Ministers have interests in health corporations? 12oct13 (Weston General Hospital Patients Before Profit Campaign)

The above is just a small selection of the ‘internal lobbying’ threat which can occur via conflicts of interest within government (aka “corruption” to the public). I have been told that a comprehensive coverage would fill at least a book! I have created an evolving document (with reference links) that gives more depth and breadth than above (link below).

For those of you concerned with the increase of corporate power within government, you may also be concerned by their bids for power over and above governments, as can be gained in the “behind closed doors” negotiations for FTAs (Free Trade Agreements, such as the TTIP {EU-USA) and the CETA (EU-Canada). But that is another big topic (also on my website).

Rules for procedures aiming to prevent this from happening currently apply to local government, thus why not also in central government? (Be aware that the local government code of conduct has been weakened by coalition legislation so that not all of local government law now provides a perfect anti-corruption model).

REF: Coalition Government at Corruption Crossroads - Which Turning Will It Take?  by Robert Barrington of Transparency International.