In this issue...

Cabinet Shuffle leads to Record Breaking Registry Updates

With the Paris 2024 Olympics coming to an end and the Paralympic Games starting soon, we want to acknowledge the Herculean efforts by lobbyists, senior officers and primary contacts to make sure their registrations were updated following the June 6 cabinet shuffle.

Not all cabinet changes result in significant changes to the names of lobbying targets, but this one had multiple name changes as well as the splitting up and reconfiguration of ministries. This meant registry staff made more than 20 updates to the target lists on the registry. When all was said and done, it was like comparing the traditional pentathlon to the modern pentathlon!

We then had to pass the baton to lobbyists and senior officers who are responsible for ensuring their registrations are up to date by selecting the new ministry and ministers’ offices targets.

We know this process requires focus and endurance, especially for those who have more than one registration.

That's why we were so pleased with the result. Hundreds of you stepped up to the starting line and ran your best race – many of you achieved a personal best in the time you took to file your updates, easily meeting the 30-day deadline.

Our Lobbyists Registry team also rallied, reviewing and processing more than 2,100 registrations in less than a month, well above the monthly average of 500 registrations.

All in all, it was a glorious display of teamwork as well as dedication to achieving compliance with the Lobbyists Registration Act, 1998.

A truly medal-winning performance!

Annual Report Recap

The Integrity Commissioner’s 2023-2024 Annual Report was released in June and featured registry statistics, information on compliance activities and summaries of investigations conducted in the last year.

In his annual message, Integrity Commissioner J. David Wake continued to advocate for a comprehensive legislative review of the Lobbyists Registration Act, 1998. Specifically, the Commissioner discussed how the 50-hour threshold required for registration for in-house lobbyists needs to be updated.

“This threshold is an unreasonable stumbling block to effective enforcement of a lobbyist registration regime that should meet the goal of transparency. You can do a lot of lobbying in only a few hours, which does not currently need to be disclosed by in-house lobbyists. By comparison, consultant lobbyists have no such threshold,” Commissioner Wake wrote.

You can read the Commissioner’s full message in the annual report.

In the last year, the Office initiated 284 compliance reviews, 33 of which were referred for assessment to determine if an investigation is warranted. Compliance reviews are initiated when staff identify potential non-compliance with the Act, such as not meeting the required timelines to register or to update a registration. The Commissioner opened 10 investigations last year.

The graphic below breaks down how compliance reviews were handled.

Share your gold medal compliance tip

Keeping with the Olympics theme, we know that making sure your registration(s) are accurate and on time is usually a marathon, not a sprint. Compliance takes planning and dedication and often it’s a team effort.

While we do our best to provide tips and information about compliance with the Act, we know many of you have your own tips on how to stay on top of registration requirements and own the compliance podium.

So we want to hear from you! Using the form below, please share your best or favourite tip. It could be about anything from ways to keep track of timelines, ensuring accuracy in your registration(s) or navigating the registry system. You can provide your name or remain anonymous.

Your helpful tip may be used in a future issue of ON Lobbying.

Submit your tip