The Guardian, Jenny Percival, 26/6/2008

A peer said today that she will withdraw a parliamentary security pass from a defence industry lobbyist, whom she engaged as an adviser, because his role was "open to misinterpretation".

Liberal Democrat Baroness Harris of Richmond agreed to strip Robin Ashby of his pass after a list of the interests of peers' staff was published for the first time last night.

The publication of the list has revived a long-running controversy over whether lobbyists should be allowed to work for parliamentarians and to hold passes that give them privileged access to the Houses of Parliament.

Ashby, managing partner of public affairs company Bergmans Defence Consultancy, which numbers many major defence firms among its clients, insisted he never used his access to lobby ministers on their behalf.

However, a Liberal Democrat party spokesman said that although Ashby was given a pass to help him in his role as an adviser, Harris accepted that his commercial interests left the arrangement "open to misinterpretation".

Ashby, whose firm is based in Newcastle, said he worked in parliament two or three times a week but insisted he was not engaged in lobbying.

He said much of his activity was as the unpaid founder and director of the UK Defence Forum thinktank, including organising homecoming receptions for troops.

The only occasion on which he had used his access to politicians to push an interest was last year, as spokesman for 100,000 small shareholders in Northern Rock, he said.

"That's the only bit of lobbying I did in that way; is that a bad thing? I can do all the things I get remunerated for remotely, from outside parliament."

Ashby said later that "access to parliament is a basic right of anybody" and that his work in parliament had been "entirely honest, straightforward and open".

He told BBC Radio 4's World at One: "I think that it's very sad that the house authorities have reacted in this way. They have set a precedent which means that every person who works for any other organisation should have their passes withdrawn - all those who work for charities or for public affairs companies".

The Bergmans website - which features pictures of Ashby with leading politicians taken outside parliament - describes one of its roles as ensuring "issues like jobs, UK economic and industrial benefits and added value (including export potential) are fully understood by a wider audience, and so are accommodated".

Its says its communications team, headed by Ashby, is designated the "Green Team...after the colour of the leather in the House of Commons".

One major client is quoted praising "the capability and knowledge you bring in terms of contact with the specialist media and especially with MPs".

Ashby told the Press Association that he always declared his interests to ministers and others when he met them in parliament.

He conceded that most of the advice he provided to Harris, on police, security and defence issues, was done remotely.

He rejected suggestions she was paid a "regular" income from another of his firms, Great North News, and said she had only ever received a one-off payment for some "occasional journalism".

Bergmans also offers to submit freedom of information (FOI) requests on behalf of clients who fear doing so themselves "may prejudice their relationship with government, especially where the departments in which they are interested are also their potential customers".

Labour MP Tony Wright, who chairs the public administration committee which is conducting an inquiry into lobbying, told the Independent: "If lobbyists are getting parliamentary passes to ply their trade, and if lobbying companies are putting in FOI requests to conceal the identity of their clients, then these are issues of real concern that need attention."

The new list of peers' staff also reveals that Mike Bassett, head of public policy at health insurance company Bupa, works for Labour's Lord Leith, a non-executive chairman of Bupa.