Thank you. How are you?
Good morning, ladies and gentlemen. Bonjour à tous. My name is Charles King. I'm the president of the Government Relations Institute of Canada. I am also the vice-president of government relations for Shaw Communications.
With me is Jim Patrick, who is the treasurer of GRIC, chair of our legislative affairs committee, and senior vice-president at the Canadian Wireless Telecommunications Association. I'd also like to put on the record that Jim is the one who has been spearheading our review of this act, and I want to thank him on behalf of the association.
As you may know, GRIC directly represents some 300 government relations professionals across Canada. Our membership includes consultant lobbyists as well as corporate and organizational lobbyists. GRIC welcomes this review of the Lobbying Act, as it presents government and other stakeholders with an opportunity to clarify elements of the act and its supporting framework.
Through daily practice over the past few years we have identified several areas that have served to cause confusion, not only for lobbyists, but for public servants and parliamentarians as well. This review provides an opportunity for Parliament to ensure that the rules that apply to lobbyists and public office holders are clear, reasonably enforced, and applied equally to everyone.
We have filed a comprehensive written submission with the committee, and today we'll be highlighting GRIC's five core recommendations for bringing additional clarity to the Lobbying Act and its supporting framework, while at the same time maintaining the government's objectives and Canadians' expectations when it comes to transparency and clarity in the government relations business.
At the outset, let me stress that we're not here today asking for easier rules for lobbyists. We are asking for and seeking clearer rules for lobbyists. Lobbying is a fundamental part of the political decision-making process. As lobbyists, our focus is working with our clients and government to make sure that laws and regulations are effective and practical and support the government's economic and social objectives.
Parliamentarians, government officials, business executives, and charitable organizations each have their own distinct way of talking about public policy issues and managing them. Professional lobbyists assist those unfamiliar with government in navigating the ever-changing landscape of government rules and regulations. Put in another way, lobbyists are translators. We explain business or civil society to government, and government to business or civil society.
We are hired by business and charitable groups to develop and advocate specific recommendations on legislation, regulations and fiscal decisions facing government. We are frequently approached directly by government for help on complex files.
Moreover, the vast majority of lobbyists perform these functions in total compliance with the applicable acts and regulations set out by the government.
Lobbying the government is not a privilege. It is a longstanding right that stretches back through the history of constitutional government. The vast majority of lobbyists take that right very seriously, as well as our obligations to govern our activities in accordance with the rules and regulations set out by the Government of Canada.
Since the act came into force in 2008, the overwhelming majority of communications between lobbyists and public office holders have taken place in full compliance with the letter and spirit of the act.
In other words, the majority of lobbyists, themselves, have acted in accordance with their understanding of the standards and rules set out by the government, and will continue to do so.
At the same time, the act has been interpreted and applied by the Office of the Commissioner of Lobbying, the OCL, in a way that has produced a lot of confusion and uncertainly for lobbyists and public office holders.
If the objective of the act was to provide increased transparency and accountability, the way the act has been administered has in many cases had the complete opposite effect: to confuse and muddy the rules under which lobbyists conduct their professional and, in some cases, personal affairs.
This is why GRIC has presented the committee with a short list of specific recommendations we believe would increase the predictability, transparency, accountability, and effectiveness of the regulatory framework for lobbying in Canada.
Jim.