Stratagem
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Policy, lobbying and the NI Assembly Katherine McDonald Stratagem
description
Katherine McDonald of Strategem summarising the first four months of the Assembly and highlighting some of the challenges ahead.
Transcript of Stratagem
THE ISSUES• Water charges
• Health (prescriptions, personal care)
• Education (11+)• The Economy (corporation tax, industrial de-
rating)
• Affordable housing
The Manifestos
Consensus can be built e.g.:– Commissioner for Older People– Free personal care – Mental health
• Some spending commitments e.g.:– Drop prescription charges (UUP, SF)
• Devolutionary comparisons and RoI
Lobbying in the Manifestos
• Postcode prescribing and access to drugs
• Access to dementia medications
• Arthritis, MS, cancer, heart disease and stroke, respiratory disease
• Diabetes, stroke and cardiovascular illnesses
Election Results Party Seats
DUP 36 +6
Sinn Fein 28 +4
UUP 18 -9
SDLP 16 -2
Alliance Party 7 +1
PUP 1
Green Party 1 +1
Ind Health 1
DHSS&PS Minister Michael McGimpsey
• RPA and local commissioning• Review of Prescription charges• MRSA• Mental health and suicide prevention• Free personal care
Environment
• RPA – future of local government
• Planning backlog
• Giant’s Causeway
Education• Classroom Assistants’ Pay
• Post 11 arrangements
• School buildings modernisation
Employment & Learning• FE Lecturers pay dispute
• Tackling illiteracy
• Building skills base for economic vision
• Regional minimum wage
Enterprise, Trade and Investment
• Employment levels healthy
• New inward investment
• Move away from public sector dominance
Finance & Personnel
• Inherited budget and CSR
• Efficiency savings – ‘only 3%?’
• Varney and corporation tax
• Managing other Ministers
Regional Development
• Delayed water charges
• Review of Water and Sewerage
• Infrastructure Investment
Social Development• Welfare Reform Bill
• Affordable Housing
• Funding for loyalist programmes
Assembly Business• Affordable Housing debate – housing
associations
• Free Personal Care – Age Concern
• Domestic Violence – Women’s Aid
• Fuel Poverty – SCF, Barnardo’s
• Carers’ Support – Carers Week
"Many people in politics can tell you what just happened to you...you need to change
outcomes."
Tony Podesta,
Washington Lobbyist
Making Real Impact
1. What do you want to say? 2. Whom do you want to say it to - who has
an interest? Who wields influence? 3. What do you do - actions4. Is it working?
“
1.What’s my line?
• What’s do I want?
• Where do I need it?
• What’s my evidence?
• How much will it cost?
• KEEP IT LOCAL
Evidence base Politically acceptable
What is do-able
Understand the environment – Understand the environment – where does policy come from? where does policy come from?
2. Targeting
Minister
Permanent Secretary/Special Advisers
Civil ServiceOFMDFM
MLAs and Constituents
Party Colleagues and
Policy Staff
The ‘Establishment’
Party Members
Unions,
user groups
lobby groups
Academics, think-tanks
experts
3. What can we do?
• Meetings
• Briefings – short
• Committee presentation
• Questions
• Debates
• Constituency events
• Party conferences
OTHER ACTIVITIES• Media • Photocalls• Articles• Opinion Pieces• Profiles• Seminars• Dinners
4. LEARNING FROM EXPERIENCE
LEARNING
WHO HELPED
KNOWLEDGE AT START
THE CHALLANGE
A Corporate Case?
IS IT WORKING?• Remember, change does not happen
overnight, so…
• …build in milestones/benchmarks to keep your self motivated
– Parties met, meetings held, column inches etc.
• Evaluate, then start again!
• ‘All politics is local’
• Coalitions and opposition
• Persevere
• Build relationships for the long-term
“If you don’t lobby,
government assumes you have no problems”
– Ellis, N. (1998) Parliamentary Lobbying
