Major investor networks have released a new standard for responsible climate lobbying following work initiated by AP7, the Church of England Pensions Board (CEPB) and BNP Paribas Asset Management.
The standard builds on the work of other frameworks but is described as the first to represent broad consensus about defining what responsible climate lobbying practice looks like.
AP7, CEPB and BNPP AM announced the project in 2020, with two public consultations subsequently carried out that attracted more than 200 responses from institutional investors, corporates, civil society and others based in 19 countries.
“Corporate lobbying can significantly influence public climate policy,” said Clare Richards, senior engagement manager at CEPB. “We want the standard to set a high bar for companies, and to encourage a move away from ‘negative lobbying’ towards actively engaging in ‘responsible lobbying’ through supporting policies aligned with the goals of the Paris Agreement.”
Investors who wish to support the standard can sign onto a statement of intent to champion responsible lobbying activity, already committed to by AP7, CEPB and BNPP AM.
The 14-point standard calls on companies to make formal commitments to responsible climate lobbying, to disclose the funding and other support they provide to all trade associations involved in climate change-related lobbying, and to take action if lobbying activity undertaken by them, or their trade associations, runs counter to the goals of the Paris Agreement.
“We must ensure that we are all rowing in the same direction”
Adam Kanzer, head of stewardship, Americas for BNPP AM
“Some of these standards will represent relatively new ideas for companies, such as the use of an external standard – the 1.5°C goal of the Paris Agreement – to guide corporate lobbying,” said Adam Kanzer, head of stewardship, Americas for BNPP AM.
“We’re also asking companies to work to address misaligned policy positions taken by their trade associations, which otherwise puts companies in the awkward position of financing both sides of the issue.
“We must ensure that we are all rowing in the same direction. Corporate lobbying that is misaligned with the 1.5°C goal of the Paris Agreement is not simply a waste of corporate assets, it is a common threat to our future.”
Consultancy Chronos Sustainability, NGO InfluenceMap and the London School of Economic were involved in developing the standard, with the likes of the Principles for Responsible Investment and the Institutional Investors Group on Climate Change acting as strategic advisers.
Companies will be assessed on the basis of the standard for the first time this April in a pilot benchmark by InfluenceMap, with the pilot focused on the automotive sector.
“The Global Standard is extremely timely,” said Ed Collins, director, corporate lobbying, InfluenceMap.
“Corporate political engagement continues to represent one of the key barriers to delivering the Paris Agreement’s goals. At the same time, we are seeing accelerating shareholder willingness to take action against companies holding back the regulatory response deemed essential by the international scientific community.”
In Denmark, labour market pension provider Sampension recently announced it was adopting a new policy on corporate lobbying, with a recent poll showing companies’ lobbying activities were important to its membership.
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