Direct Lobbying Transparency
| Overall Assessment | Comment | Score |
|---|---|---|
| Comprehensive | Australian Ethical Investment provides a very detailed and candid picture of its climate-policy lobbying. It names a broad suite of specific measures it has tried to influence, including the Australian “Safeguard Mechanism reforms,” the “NSW Climate Plan,” the “Nature Repair Market Bill,” proposed amendments to the Environmental Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act (including a climate trigger), and its advocacy for a science-based 2035 Nationally Determined Contribution as well as requirements that climate-related financial disclosures be tested against a 1.5 °C scenario. The company is equally explicit about how and where it lobbies: it describes “meeting with key politicians and departments on the importance of the target,” formal submissions to the Climate Change Authority and the Department of Industry, Science and Resources, delegations to Canberra led by its Chair, public letters to Parliament, and indirect work through CA100+, IGCC and other investor coalitions, along with shareholder resolutions and AGM questions aimed at banks and insurers. Targets are identified by name, ranging from specific federal departments and parliamentarians to listed companies such as NAB and Westpac. Finally, the desired outcomes are spelled out in measurable terms—ending finance for new fossil-fuel expansion, securing “rigorous transition plan requirements by 2025,” ensuring banks “align all large-scale lending and insurance with the 2015 Paris Climate Agreement,” inserting a climate trigger into the EPBC Act and adopting an ambitious, Paris-aligned 2035 emissions target. This combination of clearly identified policies, well-explained lobbying channels and concrete goals demonstrates a comprehensive level of transparency about the company’s climate lobbying activities. | 4 |