Mr. Speaker, I would like to reiterate what the member for Elk Island said, that it was a great experience working on this bill in committee. We on this side of the House found it satisfying as well.
The member's motion will not be supported by the government because we believe the bill covers the very thing the member says it does not cover. If a lobbyist were to lobby for an issue with a public servant even though the initiation was made by a public office holder on a totally different issue, it does not take away from the responsibility of the lobbyist to report that piece of lobbying in the context of a government initiated meeting.
There is a balancing act between transparency and making sure there is a good working relationship between the government and the private sector in the interests of developing good public policy.
We did say that in the interpretation bulletin from the registrar that the area the member is concerned about is crafted precisely to make sure there would not be any kind of loophole.
The essence of the bill states clearly that if a lobbyist within 10 days of registering is arranging meetings or attempting to influence legislative proposals, bills, resolutions, regulations, policies, programs, award of grants, contributions, other financial benefits, or award of contracts, must be duly noted.
Another thing the member talked about in his speech was the need to make sure all of this information was open and accessible. All of these registrations, all meetings and all of this information would be available through computer access via Internet. Therefore there is no need for this amendment. The bill has gone a long way in advancing the transparency of the relationship between lobbyists and the Government of Canada.