Scientists in the UK are fretting over new government rules that could prevent them for using the results of their own research to lobby for changes to laws or regulations.

The Cabinet Office announced on February 6 that "organisations receiving government grants will be banned from using these taxpayer funds to lobby government and parliament." The rules are expected to apply not only to pressure groups and charities—the main targets—but also to universities and researchers who receive public funds.

An extra clause will be inserted into new and renewed grant agreements from May 1 to prevent lobbying. Whitehall said it was designed to ensure "taxpayer funds are spent on improving people’s lives and good causes, rather than lobbying for new regulation or using taxpayers’ money to lobby for more government funding."

Some UK scientists are worried that this might prevent research results which have been obtained, even in part, through government grants from being used for lobbying purposes, the Guardian reported. "Ecologists who found out that new planning laws were harming wildlife would not be able to raise the issue in public, while climate scientists whose findings undermined government energy policy could have work suppressed," the newspaper said.

The scientists' concern about being muzzled is understandable: the UK government has previously refused to listen to its advisors, and gagged its experts.

The Cabinet Office told Ars that the aim was to ensure that grant money was "used correctly." A spokesperson emphasised that "all organisations [funded by government grants] are free to lobby—just not to spend taxpayers' money doing it." For example, those receiving grants can lobby the government by using funds obtained elsewhere; individuals—such as scientists—could lobby in a purely personal capacity. When quizzed by Ars about whether the results of research funded by the government could be used to support those kinds of lobbying efforts, the Cabinet Office spokesperson simply told us this "would be fine."

However, each government department is being given freedom to apply the new policy as it thinks best. It's not yet clear how the rules will be applied to universities and academics by the department for business, innovation and skills (BIS), and whether the use of research results will be affected. Asked by Ars about its future plans here, BIS said in a written reply: "Guidance published by the Cabinet Office outlines how departments are able to make qualifications to the clause, and we are working with stakeholders to determine how this might apply to the research base."

Stephen Curry, Professor of structural biology at London's Imperial College, and a well-known writer on science, told Ars: "We need to see clear guidance from the government on how publicly-funded academics are exempted from the regulation." Government departments have until May 1 to finalise their plans, and the Cabinet Office said that comments about the anti-lobbying rule from interested parties should be directed to the relevant department.

One curiosity of the Cabinet Office press release on the new rules is the way the move has been framed. The opening paragraph of the announcement begins: "The Institute of Economic Affairs has undertaken extensive research on so-called ‘sock puppets’, exposing the practice of taxpayers’ money given to pressure groups being diverted to fund lobbying rather than the good causes or public services."

The Institute of Economic Affairs (IEA) is a registered charity that seeks "to educate people about the merits of free markets." It has written no less than three papers on "sock puppets," but according to its spokesperson, the IEA did not have any face-to-face meetings with the Cabinet Office about the new anti-lobbying policy.

Rather ironically for an organisation that is concerned about "sock puppets," the IEA doesn't publish any details about who is behind the £1.7 million in donations it received in 2014. The IEA's spokesperson told Ars in an email: "[IEA] does not accept any funding from the UK (or any other) government. It accepts donations from individuals, foundations and companies both domestic and foreign in order to pursue its charitable objectives."

Publicly-available information indicates that the IEA has received funding from international tobacco companies such as British American Tobacco, Imperial Tobacco, and Japan Tobacco International, as well as from the oil giant Exxon. The IEA told Ars: "With regard to our editorial position, the IEA does not accept any earmarked money for commissioned research work from any company."