New Brunswick’s government proposes overhaul of lobbying rules

The New Brunswick government has proposed an overhaul of its lobbying rules that would require hundreds more people to register as lobbyists and would empower the provincial ethics chief to fine rule breakers.

If passed into law, the measures would also require lobbyists to regularly record their meetings with politicians and other lobbying activities in an online searchable database run by the office of the integrity commissioner.

Justice Minister Robert McKee told reporters on Tuesday the legislation aims to “enhance transparency and accountability of our government, promote confidence and trust.”

The Liberals say their bill represents the first major reform to lobbying rules in more than a decade and is sorely needed for New Brunswick to keep pace with the best practices of its provincial counterparts.

The legislation comes after the Telegraph-Journal reported earlier this year that Premier Susan Holt had attended a trio of sporting events with tickets paid for by private companies. In response to the reporting, Holt said she was planning on modernizing the rules.

Holt’s attendance over the last 14 months of two NHL games and an NBA match were above board, Charles Murray, the province’s integrity commissioner, told The Canadian Press on Tuesday.

Existing rules do not require those activities to be disclosed automatically. But, if the bill is adopted, Murray said, those kinds of meetings would be proactively disclosed as part of the revamped registry process.

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The changes would also cause the number of registered lobbyists to grow from less than 200 to more than 2,000 because of a change in the legal definition, said Murray, who was consulted as the government prepared the legislation.

Officials say the bill closes a loophole that currently requires people to register as lobbyists only if they spend more than 20 per cent of their time lobbying. Under the changes both professional consultants who lobby government and company employees who participate in lobbying would be required to register.

Murray says the proposed changes are “robust” and create a proactive approach to keeping track of those working to influence provincial policy.

As commissioner, Murray would acquire the authority to conduct investigations into infractions and issue financial penalties to those who don’t follow regulations.

Under the existing system, the province’s registry lists the lobbyist and the company they work for. Now, noted Murray, the new scheme would list when, where and who the lobbyists met with.

However, those changes will take some time to get into place, even if the bill receives royal assent at the end of the spring legislature session next month.

Officials estimate building the new database and consulting with lobbyists ahead of the bill coming into force could take about a year. Then, there would be a yearlong moratorium on enforcement so lobbyists could get up to speed on the new system.

The moratorium concerns the Progressive Conservatives. “What does that mean for the premier? Does she still get to go to NBA and NHL games without New Brunswickers knowing?” said Glen Savoie, the Opposition leader.

“Because if there’s a hole that needs to be filled — if there’s water leaking from the ship — you would think they’d be in a little more of a hurry than what they actually are.”

In response, Murray said Savoie made “a valid point” and he would’ve been happy to see the process start earlier but there needs to be a transition period.

Tyler Downey, a policy analyst with the Strategic Steps consulting firm, says the proposed regulations would bring New Brunswick “into the modern world” in terms of transparency in Canada.

Still, the rules could be strengthened further by adding spending limits for lobbyists hosting politicians at events, Downey said in an interview.

“If you’re going to have an event, for example … maybe you can’t let that event be $100,000, right?”

The provincial integrity commissioner would also be charged with creating a code of conduct for lobbyists. Murray said he hopes to lay the groundwork for the policy before his term ends in December.

Duff Conacher with Democracy Watch, a group that advocates for democratic reform, says the bill closes “only some loopholes” and leaves open others.

In a news release, Conacher says the bill “doesn’t close the huge loopholes that allow for secret lobbying if the lobbyist is not paid, if a politician or government official invites the lobbyist to lobby them, if the lobbying is about the enforcement of a law, or if political party officials are lobbied.”