Key facts
- The bill would make the NSW Electoral Commission regulator of third-party lobbyists and let it audit compliance.
- It extends the lobbying act to lobbyists dealing with councils, who would need to register and follow the code.
- In-house corporate lobbyists, about 80% of people lobbying in the corridors of power, stay outside the disclosure regime.
- Graham said registering in-house lobbyists would create unnecessary red tape because their interests are already clear.
- The bill does not cover lobbyists' dealings with ministerial chiefs of staff, which Graham said are not decision makers.
- Icac recommended a separate lobbying commissioner and six months' gardening leave for some public servants; the bill waters both down.
New South Wales's lower house passed a government bill on Wednesday, November 11, 2026, that would formally make the NSW Electoral Commission the regulator of third-party lobbyists and give it powers to audit compliance with the Lobbying of Government Officials Act and the lobbyists code of conduct. The bill also extends the act to lobbyists who deal with councils, requiring them to register and follow the code.
The legislation follows the Independent Commission against Corruption's Rosny inquiry, which heard allegations that a group of former Liberal staffers known as the Reformers was paid $2m by developer Jean Nassif and worked to advance his interests. Only one of the operatives was a registered lobbyist. Nassif told Icac he was "not corrupt" and has fled to Lebanon after the collapse of his company Toplace. Charles Perrottet has repeatedly denied taking payments from Nassif for political outcomes. Dominic Perrottet is not a person of interest in the inquiry and is not accused of any wrongdoing.
The bill omits several Icac recommendations. In-house lobbyists employed directly by companies, who the report says make up about 80% of the people lobbying in the corridors of power, remain outside the disclosure regime. Graham said registering them would have "created unnecessary red tape given it is already clear whose interests are being served or represented." The bill also does not cover lobbyists' interactions with ministerial chiefs of staff, which Graham said is because "ministerial staff are not decision makers."
Icac had recommended a separate lobbying commissioner; the government instead gives the job to the electoral commission, which already keeps the register. The bill also waters down Icac's proposal for a six-month prohibition on some public servants taking lobbying roles after leaving the bureaucracy. The government says it plans to make ministerial diary disclosures fully searchable rather than issuing them quarterly as PDFs.
The Greens have introduced a private member's bill that would implement most of Icac's recommendations, including extending the scheme to in-house lobbyists and a four-year exclusion for some public sector employees. Kobi Shetty, the party's anti-corruption spokesperson, said: "When industries with deep pockets get a louder voice than the communities affected by their decisions, public trust in our democracy is eroded." Geoffrey Watson, senior counsel at the Centre for Public Integrity, said the government's bill is a step in the right direction and he hopes it passes the Legislative Council, but he wishes it had been more ambitious.