We're talking about the distrust and cynicism of the public toward politics. But if these groups had to disclose their sources of funding, there would be much more transparency. We've recently heard in the media about Friends of Science, which presented itself as a group that questions the role of human activity on climate change. The group is made up of scientists and researchers from the University of Calgary. Finally, it came out that the group was funded in part by a company in the energy sector, Talisman Energy.
I think this type of situation contributes to building the distrust of the public toward politics. We should simply add a field to the registry and require groups that engage in lobbying to reveal their major sources of funding so we can know which backer has an influence on their lobbying activities. It's a simple change that could help reduce the public's distrust.