The Association for Scottish Public Affairs (ASPA) has banned Charlotte Street Partners for breaking its code of conduct by hiring a sitting politician.
Last week, the strategic communications consultancy based in Edinburgh and London, appointed Lord Duncan of Springbank to its team as a consulting partner.
He currently serves as deputy speaker of the House of Lords, after being appointed as a working peer by the Prime Minister in 2017.
Responding to the move, ASPA convener Peter Duncan said: "ASPA is absolutely clear - you can be a lobbyist or you can be a law maker, but you cannot be both.
"Our code of conduct makes the position completely clear, and as a result Charlotte Street Partners will no longer be entitled to membership of our Association.
"Their details are being removed from our website - we will not compromise on our high standards."
A spokesman for Charlotte Street Partners responded that the appointment has been approved by the UK government’s Advisory Committee on Business Appointments (ACOBA).
"His work for us, as a strategic consultancy, will focus on analysis and advice relating to the European Union, and on environmental matters.
"This is fully compliant with ACOBA guidance, which makes clear that he is not permitted to undertake any lobbying, which was never the intention."
Charlotte Street Partners is registered with the Office of the Registrar of Consultant Lobbyists and the Scottish Parliament Lobbying Register, which ensures the company observes the Transparency of Lobbying, Non-Party Campaigning and Trade Union Administration Act 2014 and the Lobbying (Scotland) Act 2016 respectively.
