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Shelter letter to govt re ‘gagging clause’
Shelter has written to the govt to request that it ceases referring to it in defence of the proposed ban on
organisations using taxpayer funds for lobbying -
I am writing in reference to the recent announcement of a new clause in grant agreements banning
organisations from using taxpayer funds for lobbying (commonly known as the ‘gagging clause’). We
welcome today’s decision to pause the implementation of the new clause pending a review of
representations made on the matter.At the time of the announcement, and on occasions since then, government representatives have used
Shelter’s name in defence of this new policy. The grounds for mentioning Shelter are that we have already
been subject to these rules as part of a pilot within DCLG, and that this has not prevented us from using our
own funds to lobby government on housing policy. This is a misrepresentation of the situation and it came as
a complete surprise to us to be referenced in this way. As such I request that the government cease referring
to Shelter in this context in future.