Political Influencing

The best way to influence a politician is to meet them face to face. You can normally find the contact details and surgery dates on the web. The best method is to call their office to arrange an appointment, and then follow up with an email to confirm your attendance and to outline what it is you want to talk to them about. Some will hold open drop-in surgeries that will operate on a first come first serve basis, but it is still worth writing or calling in advance.

When you meet with your representative, have a clear idea of what you want to discuss, what you want them to do to help, and try to keep things to a few key points. You might have only five or ten minutes or so to speak with them if it is a busy day. Be sure to thank them for meeting with you and give them an opportunity to ask you questions; try not to dominate proceedings!

If it is a matter the politician can assist with, they might agree to write to a minister or raise the issue on your behalf. If this is the case, give them a few weeks to do so before writing to see if they have had a reply or an opportunity to raise the issue. Try to have something to leave with them which outlines your points – the BDA normally provide briefing sheets or pamphlets for issues on which we are campaigning. If not, a short briefing note on one or two sides of A4 is ideal. You could also invite them to visit your service to learn more.

If you can’t meet your local representative, you can write to them to set out your concerns or views. A hard copy letter is best as surveys show it is still the most read form of correspondence, but an email is also good (ideally do both). Make it clear what the issue is and what you would like them to do about it. Try if at all possible to restrict yourself to one side of A4.

Politicians (or their caseworkers) respond to nearly all correspondence from constituents, normally within a few weeks (although they may be slower at busy times of the year or during recess). If you don’t hear back within three weeks, give their constituency office a call, and ask whether progress has been made with your letter.

The BDA will from time to time include an example letter as part of a campaign or theme. You can use this as the basis for your own letter, but it is always better to write in your own style rather than sending a template. Politician’s offices are much more likely to ignore correspondence if they receive a number of identical looking letters.

If you really want to engage with a politician, you could invite them to visit your service. This can be a great way to highlight positive work you are doing, a service that is under threat or generate local media interest in dietetics. It is also a good way to make them a champion for the profession, as it gives them a story to tell if they take part in debates or raise questions. 

Politicians are normally only interested in services that affect their constituents, so bear that in mind. Although a politician will, for example, visit a hospital that is not in their constituency if it serves a whole area, you are more likely to have success if the meeting takes place in their constituency.

You could include such an invitation in a letter or email, or bring it up as part of your meeting at a constituency surgery (if you live in the constituency where you work). You might need to follow up and pester their office to ensure your visit goes in the diary. Politicians’ diaries are extremely busy, and they will often need to be in Parliament/Assembly during most of the week. Flexibility is key. Fridays, when politicians normally return to their constituencies, are when you are most likely to secure a visit. Local councillors will generally have slightly more flexibility, but most have other jobs.

Make sure you have the appropriate permissions from your employers before inviting the politician, and that you have some interesting things on the agenda to highlight to them. Make sure you share a running order for the visit with their office in advance so they know what to expect. Brief your colleagues ahead of the visit about what you are seeking to promote or discuss; it’s important to be consistent in your message. Avoid nasty surprises, and don’t aim to ambush them with difficult questions; this isn’t constructive.

It might be that the visit is fairly short, perhaps only half an hour to an hour so aim to pack a few things in. Allow some flexibility in your agenda as politicians will often be late, or need to rush off early to make other appointments. They will probably bring at least one member of their staff with them – these are good people to know as they will do most of the legwork in the constituency.

Make sure you have access to a camera so you can record the visit and use in follow-up media releases, social media or newsletters. The politician will normally be very keen to highlight the visit on social media and on their website. Make sure you follow up the visit by email or phone to thank them for attending and perhaps provide a more detailed briefing – and share the photos!

Although politicians get most of the attention, most of the actual work of advising on, creating and implementing policy falls to civil servants working in government departments or for executive agencies. Of course, they do so from a strictly politically-neutral standpoint. This makes them important people to know and influence, but for different reasons to politicians. Civil servants will not determine the overall policy direction, but once this has been decided they will have a significant say over how it is actually developed and put into place. 

If you can identify the right civil servants to speak to, you can help to ensure policy implementation and creation is well informed. Indeed, civil servants will often be welcoming of constructive input which might help them overcome a policy problem or avoid a mistake. 

As with politicians, writing to or meeting with a civil servant may be the best way to put across your point of view. Don't aim for someone too senior, as you are much less likely to get engagement and if you do it is likely to be less helpful. Policy experts at slightly lower levels are actually likely to be better informed on the topic and more closely involved with the actual work you wish to influence. 

It is important to remember that civil servant are politically neutral, and have to offer balanced and evidence-based views. Back up your own arguments with robust evidence, but also consider in advance what others will be telling them. On a big policy issue, you may be one of many hundreds of people offering views and information to a government department. Work with others to help you make your case collectively. Also make sure you provide evidence in written form, not just verbally, and take any opportunity to respond to official consultations on a policy.