Perhaps I am confused as I believe that members of Parliament are elected as the people's representatives and that Parliament House is the people's house.

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If I am correct, and I think I am, I don't understand the privileged access lobbyists have to Parliament House and elected representatives.

Nor do I understand how access to a minister can be bought for thousands of dollars.

I, and no doubt many other voters, would like to be in a position to meet with several ministers, including the prime minister.

If I could I would put forward my research-based perspective on how our political system often fails to prioritise the public interest above all other interests, in particular party and personal interests.

Should I be granted a meeting, my conversation would also be about integrity in public life, why there is so much disenchantment with political parties, with many MPs and the broader political system; and importantly how the lack of public trust in elements of the system could be turned around.

However, I don't believe that I should have to pay thousands of dollars in order to have that conversation.

I would also like to be in a position to roam around Parliament House unescorted and camp out in a space supposedly reserved for MPs and officers and staff of the Parliament.

After all, you never know who you might meet. But unfortunately, I don't have entry to such places as I don't possess one of the multitudes of orange passes granted to lobbyists and passes given to people whose role in a private sector organisation is to enhance government relations to the advantage of the firm that employs them.

I am also mystified as to why a succession of federal........

© Canberra Times