Engaging with and advising policy makers

We are a leading professional services firm and our purpose is to build trust in society and solve important problems. In fulfilling our purpose, we aim to make a constructive contribution to public policy debates. We believe that our insights can support and inform good policy making, effective opposition and better government, and in doing so we maintain a strict policy of political neutrality. Politicians and policy makers are important stakeholders to business and therefore it is important that we build relationships with them in areas of joint interest. We also engage with politicians, officials and regulators outside of the UK to reflect the international dimension of our firm’s work.

We have a Political Liaison Policy that applies to all UK staff and partners and governs the way that we interact with the main UK political parties. The Political Liaison Committee which oversees this activity meets quarterly, and includes a member of the Management Board.  

The PwC Executive Board and our Supervisory Board receive regular updates on our political activity to provide oversight and challenge to our activities. We also consult with our Public Interest Body on political matters when deemed relevant. The involvement of both the Executive and Supervisory Boards and our Public Interest Body ensures that there is engagement, decision making and accountability of our political activities at a senior level.

Our Code of Conduct further outlines the principles which guide our activity. All Partners and employees are required to comply with the Code. We do not make political cash donations nor do we permit them to be made on our behalf, although from time to time we may sponsor targeted events for example at the annual party conferences. On occasion, we provide non-cash assistance to the parties in the form of secondments. In considering any assistance (including expenditure on political activities), the PwC Executive Board has regard to ethical considerations, the possible impact on clients of the firm and the firm’s overall reputation. All the support that we undertake for political parties is fully disclosed to the Electoral Commission.

Our Political Activity Policy forbids the employment of elected members of Parliament or of the devolved administrations in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. We do employ former politicians and civil servants, and we follow all relevant rules and regulations regarding their employment including the Code of Ethics of our own regulatory body, the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales. You can view the Code here.

We are not a lobbying organisation; however, we sometimes communicate with policy makers on behalf of our clients and these conversations can fall within the scope of both the UK and Scottish Lobbying Acts. We have a UK-wide policy which applies to all staff and Partners and they are required to make an annual return confirming that they have complied with the rules if they have any such conversations. You can see our UK lobbying disclosures here and our entry on the Scottish Lobbying Register here. As part of the PwC IL network our activities in Brussels are included within our registration on the European Commission transparency register.

The UK firm is a member of the Professional and Business Services Council (PBSC) which is an independent forum for the PBS sector and government to work together to promote the long term success of the sector in the UK and internationally. Kevin Ellis, Chairman and Senior Partner for the UK firm is a member of the PBSC,  with other members of staff or partners chairing or otherwise involved with various subgroups, including Skills and Inclusion, International Trade, and Trade Technical. 

PwC also supports All Party Parliamentary Groups (APPGs) on request, where we are able to provide valuable contributions to the debate with our involvement subject to the necessary approvals set out by our political activity policy. This support can cover a range of activities including sponsorship, attendance at events, and contributions to specific research projects.

Throughout FY23, the firm engaged with policy makers in a variety of forums:

In FY23 (1 July 2022 - 30 June 2023), our engagement with policymakers ranged across several issues, including the UK’s transition to net zero, social mobility and skills, corporate governance and audit, and international trade.

PwC held events in partnership with third parties at the 2022 Labour and Conservative conferences on net zero and a fair transition, and the role of green jobs in delivering levelling up, which included leading politicians.  We also attended the SNP conference. 

PwC attended several events with senior politicians across the year. We participated in a number of sessions with Government Ministers at Business Connect, the Conservative Party Spring Forum, and regular Government working groups. We have also had meetings with, and hosted, some key stakeholders from across the political spectrum. 

Over the course of FY23, we provided submissions to the Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy Select Committee on the ‘Post-pandemic economic growth: UK labour markets’ and ‘Views on environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) reporting’ inquiries. The firm also submitted evidence to the Joint Committee on National Security Strategy’s inquiry into ‘Ransomware’ and made a submission to Chris Skidmore’s Independent Review of Net Zero.

Building on our latest Green Jobs Barometer, we continued to engage with businesses, policymakers, and skills providers across the country to explore how a just transition to net zero can continue to be achieved. These roundtables have given a particular focus to how businesses are dealing with the changes they will need to make and what can be done to support them.

The firm has also provided a secondee to the Labour Party.

Contact us

Katie Hill

Katie Hill

Political Relations, Senior Manager, PwC United Kingdom

Tel: +44 (0)7711 562031

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