The first changes to lobbying regulations since the We Charity controversy will be implemented starting on July 1, according to Blacklock’s Reporter.. Kielburger brothersCourtesy YouTube .Nancy Bélanger, the Lobbying Commissioner, announced that the modifications would apply to all 8,000 registered lobbyists in Ottawa..“There will be plenty of time for people to look at it and react,” Bélanger testified at the Commons Ethics committee. She said that draft changes to the Lobbyists’ Code of Conduct should be disclosed Saturday, May 27 and declared in force by Canada Day..The Commons last May 31, by a vote of 169 to 153, endorsed tougher legislation “to give the Commissioner of Lobbying real powers to investigate, issue fines and impose lobbying bans” under the Lobbying Act..“Where there is smoke, there is fire,” Conservative MP Damien Kurek (Battle River-Crowfoot, AB) said at the time..We Charity executives had multiple contacts with political aides in 2020 before receiving a $43.5 million federal grant..However, We Charity did not register as lobbyists and failed to disclose $481,751 in expense-paid trips, gifts, and talent fees given to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's family members..We Charity hired the daughter of then-Finance Minister Bill Morneau straight out of college and provided the Minister's family with $41,366 in trips to resorts in Kenya and Ecuador..The controversies led to Morneau's resignation on Aug. 17, 2020..The Office of the Lobbying Commissioner has expressed concerns about the limitations of its enforcement powers under the current Act and the Lobbyists' Code of Conduct..The Commissioner stated that their ability to take action is restricted to referring cases of “suspected influence peddling” to the RCMP..“How many investigations have you referred to the RCMP?” asked Conservative MP Michael Barrett (Leeds-Grenville, ON). .“In the past year, one,” replied Bélanger..“Currently, they have file files in their hands that I have referred.”.“What is the oldest?” asked Barrett..“Of those five files, there is one that dates back to 2019,” replied Bélanger..The Lobbyists' Code was rewritten in 2015, which aimed to prevent lobbyists from hiding the identities of their clients, handling confidential government documents, and offering gifts to public office holders they have a relationship with..However, then-Commissioner Karen Shepherd's request for new powers to impose monetary penalties on those who violate the code was unsuccessful..“While we live in a democratic country where both political activities and lobbying are legitimate, lobbyists must ensure that no real or apparent conflict of interest is created when these two activities intersect,” the Commissioner’s Office said eight years ago..Bloc Québécois MP René Villemure (Trois-Rivières, QC) suggested that Parliament should consider a complete overhaul of the lobbying law..“Are we at a point where we should be considering an overhaul of the Act?” asked Villemure..“Yes,” replied Bélanger..“We should have been doing a review in 2017, 2022, and now we’re in 2023, and there doesn’t seem to be one on the horizon. Absolutely, I do believe it is high time,” said Bélanger..“There are gaps and it is high time that we plugged those gaps.”.The Commissioner gave an example of the need for “more detail, contextual detail and information” about meetings between lobbyists, MPs, senators, and federal managers..“We know which public office holders were at a meeting, but we don’t know which lobbyists were at the meeting,” said Bélanger..Under current rules, it also “takes 32 hours of lobbying per month before one has to register as a lobbyist and that is far too high,” said Bélanger..Corporations can also negotiate sole-sourced federal contracts without disclosing the information, which could be done secretly.
