Decision

Advice letter: Alan Mak, Author, Icon Books Limited

Published 22 June 2026

1. BUSINESS APPOINTMENT APPLICATION: Alan Mak, former Parliamentary Under Secretary of State jointly in the Department for Business and Trade and the Cabinet Office – Paid commission as an author, Icon Books Limited

Thank you for your application, under the Government’s Business Appointment Rules for Former Ministers (the Rules), for my advice on being commissioned as an author for Icon Books Limited. 

The purpose of the Rules, as you will be aware, is to protect the integrity of government and to avoid any suspicion that those who have served in government might profit improperly from that experience or that an employer might gain unfair advantage through privileged access to government. To achieve these aims, I designate conditions that former ministers must follow. 

The material information and my consideration are set out in the annex. In light of this, I consider the following conditions to be appropriate, recognising that it is your responsibility to ensure that these are demonstrably applied in practice:

• Privileged information condition – You should not draw on (disclose or use for the benefit of Icon Books Limited, including its related parties) any privileged information available to you from your time in ministerial office. This is an ongoing duty irrespective of the time elapsed since you left office.

• Lobbying condition – For two years from your last day in office, you should not become personally involved in lobbying the UK Government or its arm’s length bodies on behalf of Icon Books Limited (including its related parties); nor should you make use, directly or indirectly, of your contacts in the government and/or ministerial office to influence policy, secure business/funding or otherwise unfairly advantage Icon Books Limited (including its related parties).

• Contracts and bids condition – For two years from your last day in office, you should not undertake any work with Icon Books Limited (including its related parties) that involves providing advice on the terms of, or with regard to the subject matter of, a bid with, or contract relating directly to the work of, the UK Government or its arm’s length bodies.

I would be grateful if you would note the following points:

• My advice is not an endorsement of the appointment.
• The advice relates solely to your previous role in government; it is separate from rules administered by other bodies such as the Office of the Registrar of Consultant Lobbyists, the Parliamentary Commissioner for Standards and the Registrar of Lords’ Interests. It is your personal responsibility to understand any other rules and regulations you may be subject to in parallel with my advice.
• By ‘privileged information’, I mean official information to which you had access as a consequence of holding office and which is not publicly available. You are also reminded that you may be subject to other duties of confidentiality, whether under the Official Secrets Act, the Ministerial Code or otherwise.
• By ‘related parties’, I mean any parent companies, subsidiaries, clients and/or other partners as may be relevant.
• As set out in the Rules, the lobbying restriction means that former ministers ‘should not engage in communication with government (ministers, civil servants, including special advisers, and other relevant officials/public office holders) –wherever it takes place – with a view to influencing a government decision, policy or contract award/grant in relation to their own interests or the interests of the organisation by which they are employed, or to whom they are contracted or with which they hold office’.

As soon as you take up the appointment, or if it is announced that you will do so, you are obliged under the Rules to inform my secretariat who will then publish this letter. You must also inform us if you propose to extend or otherwise change the nature of your role as, depending on the circumstances, it may be necessary for you to make a fresh application.

Yours sincerely,

Sir Laurie Magnus CBE

Independent Adviser on Ministerial Standards

2. Annex – Material information and consideration of the risks 

2.1 The role

You wish to take up a paid, part-time commission as an author for Icon Books Limited (Icon). In this capacity, you intend to author a non-fiction book examining prospective global technology trends and strategies for advanced economies to bolster their internal technology sectors.

You confirmed that you will have no contact with government in this role. You have noted your personal responsibility to understand your obligations under the Radcliffe Rules, in parallel with my advice. 

2.2 Dealings in office

You confirmed that you were neither involved in any policy, regulatory or commercial decisions specific to Icon, nor had access to any information that could grant the publishing company an unfair advantage.  

2.3 Departmental assessment

The Department for Business and Trade (DBT) and the Cabinet Office (CO) confirmed the details you provided with regard to your ministerial role and responsibilities, adding that while you would have had access to a broad range of information potentially relevant to your proposed book, neither department identified any specific concerns relating to the company or the book’s subject matter, and recommended the standard conditions. 

2.4 My consideration of the risks 

You made no policy, regulatory or commercial decisions specific to Icon and neither DBT nor CO had concerns over this appointment – this limits the risks.

Your role as Parliamentary Under Secretary jointly in DBT and CO would have provided general insight into matters you intend to discuss in your prospective book. The risks related to your access to information are limited given the public and transparent nature of a published book. Additionally, it has been nearly two years since you last had access to privileged information, and neither department noted any concerns. Further, the Rules do not prohibit you from utilising your general skills, knowledge, experience, and any publicly available information.  I therefore consider the risks associated with your access to information as minister to be appropriately mitigated by the standard conditions.