Thank you, Elsa.
Good afternoon, Chair and members of the committee.
I think this is quite a broad question. As you said, and as was repeated by the federal Commissioner of Lobbying and the commissioner for British Columbia, ultimately, the goal of lobbying regulation is to provide transparency and increase public trust.
In terms of what could be improved in a Canadian lobbying register, as Elsa mentioned, it's already a comprehensive law. One of the key findings from our work in recent years that is emphasized in our report, “Lobbying in the 21st Century: Transparency, Integrity and Access”, is that lobbying is no longer limited to written or oral communication. There is a case for looking into how public policies and laws can be influenced through more indirect forms of lobbying or grassroots....
The second pillar of our work, and the key message of our recommendation, is that in order to prevent undue influence, it's not just about having a lobbying register in place; it's really to build a coherent ecosystem of safeguards, which can include lobbying laws and lobbying registers. Issues related to managing conflict of interest, gifts and hospitalities, foreign influence and pre and post public employment are really about building a coherent ecosystem.
This ecosystem allows citizens to understand who is influencing the law, how and on what issues. It also allows them to understand the kinds of integrity safeguards that are in place beyond the transparency of lobbying activities and the lobbying register, and how this can be associated within a broader ecosystem of safeguards.