AG Barr PLC – Lobbying Governance & Transparency

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Lobbying Governance

Overall Assessment	Analysis	Score
Moderate	AG Barr PLC has implemented formal structures intended to align its policy engagement with its climate-change strategy, including a “newly established Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) Board Committee, chaired by a Non-Executive Director and with the CEO as a key member,” and a business-wide “No Time To Waste” environmental sustainability programme with an associated Steering Group “chaired by the CEO” that “identifies the climate change aims, ambitions and activities of the business, aligned to the strategy agreed by the Board ESG Committee.” The company further mandates that “only 2 individuals within the business [are] mandated to engage directly with policy makers – the CEO and the Head of Corporate Affairs and Communication,” and it ensures consistency by maintaining “version controlled documents, reviewed and updated regularly” to guide both direct advocacy and indirect engagement through its trade association (BSDA). While these measures establish clear roles and a coordinated process for aligning direct and indirect lobbying with its climate commitments, AG Barr does not disclose a dedicated mechanism for monitoring or reviewing its lobbying activities, nor any process to assess or align the positions of its trade association partners with its climate objectives, and we found no evidence of a board-level or independent audit specifically focused on climate-lobbying alignment. View Sources	C

Overall Assessment

Analysis

Score

Moderate

AG Barr PLC has implemented formal structures intended to align its policy engagement with its climate-change strategy, including a “newly established Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) Board Committee, chaired by a Non-Executive Director and with the CEO as a key member,” and a business-wide “No Time To Waste” environmental sustainability programme with an associated Steering Group “chaired by the CEO” that “identifies the climate change aims, ambitions and activities of the business, aligned to the strategy agreed by the Board ESG Committee.” The company further mandates that “only 2 individuals within the business [are] mandated to engage directly with policy makers – the CEO and the Head of Corporate Affairs and Communication,” and it ensures consistency by maintaining “version controlled documents, reviewed and updated regularly” to guide both direct advocacy and indirect engagement through its trade association (BSDA). While these measures establish clear roles and a coordinated process for aligning direct and indirect lobbying with its climate commitments, AG Barr does not disclose a dedicated mechanism for monitoring or reviewing its lobbying activities, nor any process to assess or align the positions of its trade association partners with its climate objectives, and we found no evidence of a board-level or independent audit specifically focused on climate-lobbying alignment.

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Lobbying Transparency

Overall Assessment	Analysis	Score
Limited	A.G. Barr discloses some but not extensive detail on its climate-policy lobbying. It identifies one specific measure it seeks to influence, the United Kingdom “Deposit Return Scheme,” noting that “DRS legislation is expected in Scotland in July 2022 and in the rest of the UK in late 2024 at the earliest.” The company outlines several ways it engages on this policy—“Worked with Scottish Government officials, trade associations and other key stakeholders to establish Circularity Scotland Ltd.” and “responding to government consultations and information requests”—and explicitly names the Scottish Government as a lobbying target. However, it provides no information on other climate policies, and only broadly states the outcome it wants: establishing Circularity Scotland Ltd., a body that will “collectively discharge producers’ DRS responsibilities” so the scheme can “incentivise consumers to return their drinks containers” and ensure they “become part of a truly circular economy.” Because it does not disclose any additional policies, gives only limited detail on how each mechanism is applied, and articulates just one high-level desired outcome, the overall transparency of its climate-related lobbying remains limited.	D