Mr. Speaker, the Commissioner of Lobbying has the authority to grant to designated public office holders an exemption from the five-year prohibition on lobbying the federal government after they leave office, if to do so is not contrary to the purposes of the Lobbying Act. The five-year prohibition and the authority of the commissioner to grant exemptions are set out in sections 10.11 and 10.12 of the Lobbying Act.
The Lobbying Act requires that every exemption granted by the Commissioner of Lobbying be made public. As such, the names of all persons granted exemptions from the five-year prohibition and the reasons for the exemption are posted on the website of the Office of the Commissioner of Lobbying of Canada at http://www.ocl-cal.gc.ca/eic/site/lobbyist-lobbyiste1.nsf/eng/h_nx00331.html. The Lobbying Act makes no provision for the publication of information regarding applications for exemptions that are not granted. As a federal government institution, the Office of the Commissioner of Lobbying of Canada applies the Access to Information Act and the Privacy Act in responding to requests regarding exemptions that are not granted.