Information & Ethics committee  I don't think so. I teach government relations, so I've been down this road before. It's not shoving money in a paper bag. The analogy I use is that the legal system in this country is complicated, it's changing, and if you come in contact with it and get it wrong, the ramificati

Information & Ethics committee  I'm not suggesting the solution; I'm just pointing it out. But I would say, what would be the harm...? If the idea is that Canadians need to know who is trying to move the balance point in a policy--for whatever reason--why is the public good served by them knowing only what Joe

Information & Ethics committee  Well, I think that's why if you move MPs out of the DPOH category, you solve that problem, because people who go and see the MP then aren't subjected to the communication filings at all.

Information & Ethics committee  Oh, I have to, absolutely--

Information & Ethics committee  Absolutely, but if I'm seeing a public office holder--not a designated--as long as I'm duly registered, that communication I have is not part of the communication filing every month.

Information & Ethics committee  I certainly agree with the principle. I just don't know...and you've touched on it too: I mean, what can you reasonably expect to accomplish through a regulatory framework? Part of the problem with in-house lobbying is that a large company will have different people on differen

Information & Ethics committee  Sure.

Information & Ethics committee  There are two final points I'll make. There has been a lot of talk about what's called “Rule 8”: registered lobbyists' participation in elections and the electoral process. Good luck with that. It's a bit of a tricky one. What you are trying to do there is balance my rights as an

Information & Ethics committee  Thanks for the question. I think the point I was making is that if you can agree on what the objective of the legislation is, then work backwards: who is caught or where does the Canadian society benefit from transparency? Again, I think the point I was trying to make is that f

Information & Ethics committee  Thank you, Madam Chair. I want to thank the committee for the invitation to participate as a witness in your five-year statutory review of the Lobbying Act, as is mandated by section 14.1 of the legislation. By way of introduction, I am a former member of Parliament. I served a