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| José Félix de Lequerica, one of Spain's first lobbyists |
| Lobbying for a Professional Lobby |
Lobbying is still a dirty word in Spain. As soon as a group of people are identified by the press or other institutions as belonging to a specific lobby, the use of this term seems to instil fear.
Lobbying is increasingly mentioned by the Spanish media, although always with a mysterious ring to it. When the reasons for something happening are not too clear, a 'powerful lobby' is often attributed with being behind the situation, and in our collective imagination we see images of corrupt businessmen conspiring behind the scenes, selling favours and contacts.
Of course, this could not be further from the truth. In Spain, as in the rest of the world, lobbying is a communication strategy used to defend certain interests at government and institutional level. And in Spain, too, it is a legitimate and legal activity, albeit one that suffers from a lack of professionalism when it comes to gaining the respect the discipline deserves.
No one in Spain has a problem in principle with defending the environment and fighting against deforestation, or working on behalf of a pharmaceutical company, but the moment that the term 'lobbying' is linked with legitimate communications activity, the public perception is that a damaging lack of transparency is involved.
Any activity linked with having high-profile political connections also helps to feed suspicion in the current Spanish political climate. The main political parties will use any incident which is out of the ordinary to attack each other, blaming one another for forest fires, failures in the health service, or even events relating to terrorism or international politics.
For instance, last year the party now in government accused the previous prime minister, José María Aznar, of having paid a lobby with public money in order to receive a decoration in the United States. Aznar´s party justified this expenditure stating that up to 70 countries maintained similar contacts with lobbyists in the United States.
 | Spanish public relations professionals need to start communicating the message that to lobby is not to scheme in the dark in order to gain higher profits, but to extend democracy. |  |
Many Spanish people and politicians do not understand that in places where lobbying is accepted and developed, as in Washington and Brussels, it is sometimes necessary to pay for the support of specialised professionals in order to defend the interests of a group, be it a country, a company or an NGO.
The negative view of lobbying is Spain is not down to public affairs being a new discipline. In fact, Spain instructed its first lobby back in the 1940s when the then foreign secretary, José Félix de Lequerica, was given the brief to change the American government's position towards the Franco regime. The lobby worked and accelerated a process that was being determined by international events. U.S. politicians understood that Franco could act as an ally during the Cold War and soon after the agreements of 1953 were signed between Spain and the U.S.
Despite this early success for lobbyists, it is still difficult to identify lobbying as an integral part of a communication strategy in Spain. Much of the responsibility for the reputation of lobbying lies with those who carry out this activity. Ironically, professional communicators have so far failed to effectively communicate the virtues and benefits of lobbying to a public which perceives it as being extremely damaging.
Part of the problem is that public relations consultants are not the only source of lobbying support for companies and organisations. Many law firms in Spain offer lobbying as part of their service, and former politicians have also set up consultancies which are actually lobbying outfits.
Spanish public relations professionals need to start communicating the message that to lobby is not to scheme in the dark in order to gain higher profits, but to extend democracy. To try to influence public institutions about future decisions that could affect our interests is not only a constitutional right, but it also strengthens the participation of citizens and other groups in public and political life.
Spanish politicians are all exposed to lobbying by pressure and interest groups, but they need to publicly recognise it and accept it as a legitimate activity. We don't need legislation, but we do need endorsement. The PR trade association in Spain has been discussing how to persuade politicians to do this for some time, as all the leading PR groups offer lobbying services, but it is felt that there is not yet the critical mass of professional lobbyists to develop a co-ordinated campaign.
The impact on the public relations community when lobbying does become a mainstream communications activity will be huge. We estimate that only around 20 per cent of the potential buyers of lobbying services in Spain are currently using the discipline, and these are mainly the handful of leading and multinational companies in each industry sector. Many more companies in Spain are interested in how to gain influence but do not know where to go for help.
Trade associations could be using lobbying to represent their members, and industries that operate in overseas markets and are subject to national and EU legislation, including fashion, tourism, and food and drink, would all benefit from being able to influence legislators.
It will probably be another five years before we have the first recognition for the skill of lobbying in Spain. The political community knows we exist, and business leaders are starting to realise that political influence is something they can manage professionally.
The concern now is that we should maintain and increase the quality of the professionals working in lobbying. We are already seeing a rise in the number of people claiming to be lobbyists without a political, campaigning, crisis or communications background. At the same time, the first graduate course on political communications is underway, and we have a new generation of young professionals coming through. In the gap between this new breed and the experienced senior lobbyists, there is room for market specialism, including healthcare, environment, food and drink, and tourism lobbying, amongst others.
The task for lobbyists in Spain is to achieve official endorsement for their discipline, and achieve a level of professionalism which avoids misunderstandings and finally dismisses the dark associations of the acitivity. The first steps in the right direction are already being taken by the industry, but lobbying to professionalise lobbying is a long-term campaign.
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| Miguel Lopez-Quesada, CEO, and Gonzalo Diaz, consultant, corporate, finance and public affairs practice, Weber Shandwick in Spain
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