Information & Ethics Committee on April 24th, 2018

[Jeff Silvester]

That's not correct.

[Nathaniel Erskine-Smith, Liberal, Beaches—East York, ON]

Okay, so correct me.

[Jeff Silvester]

During the referendum, we worked with Vote Leave, BeLeave, Veterans for Britain, and DUP.

[Nathaniel Erskine-Smith, Liberal, Beaches—East York, ON]

Okay.

You were paid, I understand, by BeLeave in the amount of over 600,000 pounds, again directed to an ad spend.

[Jeff Silvester]

Correct.

[Nathaniel Erskine-Smith, Liberal, Beaches—East York, ON]

What about the other parties?

[Jeff Silvester]

With Veterans for Britain, it was about 100,000 pounds, and with the DUP was about 32,000 pounds.

[Nathaniel Erskine-Smith, Liberal, Beaches—East York, ON]

Okay.

Where did you work out of? Did you work out of the U.K. during the referendum?

[Jeff Silvester]

We had a couple of people go there from time to time, but the work was done in Victoria, B.C.

[Nathaniel Erskine-Smith, Liberal, Beaches—East York, ON]

Okay.

I understand that you haven't agreed to co-operate with the U.K. Information Commissioner's inquiry into the use of data during the Brexit referendum. Is that correct?

[Jeff Silvester]

No, that's not correct.

On May 17, 2017, the Information Commissioner from the U.K. sent us a letter. We responded on May 24, and then we didn't hear from her again until January 30, 2018, when she sent us a letter and we replied.

[Nathaniel Erskine-Smith, Liberal, Beaches—East York, ON]

So you are willing to co-operate.

[Jeff Silvester]

We have been co-operating the whole time.

[Nathaniel Erskine-Smith, Liberal, Beaches—East York, ON]

Okay.

You had a number of different campaigns that were all using your services further to the Brexit campaign. Who coordinated and directed the ad spend of each?

[Jeff Silvester]

Do you mean from our team or from them?

[Nathaniel Erskine-Smith, Liberal, Beaches—East York, ON]

We have your point of contact for the Vote Leave campaign whom you've mentioned already. Who was your point of contact at the BeLeave campaign?

[Jeff Silvester]

Mr. Grimes.

[Nathaniel Erskine-Smith, Liberal, Beaches—East York, ON]

Okay. Who directed the ad spend for the over 600,000 pounds from BeLeave?

[Jeff Silvester]

Mr. Grimes.

[Nathaniel Erskine-Smith, Liberal, Beaches—East York, ON]

When did he direct that ad spend?

[Jeff Silvester]

The spending for BeLeave was really in the last six or seven days of the campaign.

[Nathaniel Erskine-Smith, Liberal, Beaches—East York, ON]

Okay.

[Jeff Silvester]

All of the direction and all of the information for that ad spend came from BeLeave.

[Nathaniel Erskine-Smith, Liberal, Beaches—East York, ON]

There was no coordination, in your view, between the BeLeave and Vote Leave campaigns in directing the ad spend of BeLeave.

[Jeff Silvester]

We saw no evidence of any coordination between the two.