Mr. Speaker, on pages 94 and 95 of the red book the government made a commitment to develop a stringent code of conduct for lobbyists under the auspices of the soon to be appointed independent ethics counsellor.
The people of Simcoe North and Canadians in general expect substantial reform in the way lobbying is conducted. I feel the government must go all the way, making mandatory the full disclosure of fees, clients and the names of government officials being lobbied for first and second tier lobbyists.
In addition the government should give serious consideration to making the costs of lobbying non-tax deductible.
Canadians really appreciate the fact that this government kept its election promises in the recent budget. With the implementation of these reforms, they will be all the more pleased to see that a real effort is being made to reinstill political ethics in our parliamentary institutions.