(Democracy Watch: February 2026)
The following 10 changes are needed to ensure the enforcement of the federal Lobbying Act and Lobbyists’ Code of Conduct (Lobbyists’ Code) is independent, transparent, timely, effective and accountable, which it isn’t currently and hasn’t been at any time since the Act was enacted in 1988 and the Code was enacted in 1997. Click here to see a policy paper (in English only) that sets out details concerning these much-needed changes to the current federal enforcement system (similar changes are needed to every provincial, territorial and municipal ethics law enforcement system across Canada).
1. Establish, by adding new provisions to the Lobbying Act (by completely changing section 4.1), a fully independent, fully non-partisan committee to conduct a public, merit-based search for short list (1-3) qualified candidates for the Commissioner of Lobbying, and then have that committee make the final choice and submit the choice to an all-party committee for appointment (with no possibility of re-appointment as that gives the enforcer an incentive to please office holders by letting them off when they violate the rules). This should also be the system for the appointment of all Officers of Parliament, the Commissioner and all other top officers of the RCMP, the head of FINTRAC, the new Foreign Interference Transparency Commissioner, and all judges, all of whom need to be fully independent in order to be perceived as being capable of impartially and effectively enforcing the key democratic good government and anti-corruption laws they enforce.
2. Add a new section 10.6 that requires the Commissioner of Lobbying to ensure that all lobbyists are disclosing specific details in their lobbying registrations, including “particulars to identify any relevant legislative proposal, Bill, resolution, regulation, policy, program, grant, contribution, financial benefit or contract” as required by clauses 5(2)(h) and 7(2)(i) of the federal Lobbying Act. And in that new section also require the Commissioner’s annual report to include details concerning how many lobbyists, by type of lobbyist (consultant, in-house corporate, in-house organization) violated the Act by failing to include those required details in their lobbying registrations, and what the Commissioner did to enforce the requirement in each case of a violation. This is needed because the Commissioner continues to fail to enforce this requirement, which makes it very difficult to determine what lobbyists are lobbying for specifically. Also bad is that, because of a loophole in the Act, in their monthly communication reports lobbyists are not even required to disclose the bills, regulations etc. that were mentioned in their lobbying communications (though they can include this information voluntarily).
3. Also in a new section 6, require the Commissioner of Lobbying to conduct regular, unannounced audits of a randomly selected sample of lobbyists’ communications and other activities, gifts and benefits and other matters and activities covered by the Lobbying Act and Lobbyists’ Code.
4. Also in a new section 10.6, require the Commissioner of Lobbying to publish online binding interpretations of every measure in the Lobbying Act and Lobbyists’ Code of Conduct with examples of real situations, and to publish online a summary of the Commissioner’s advice or opinion each time advice or an opinion about a new situation is given to any person covered by the Lobbying Act or Lobbyists’ Code, so everyone knows exactly what the law and code prohibit.
5. Also in a new section 10.6, require the Commissioner of Lobbying to publish online a notice setting out all the details every time the Commissioner grants an exemption to any rule in the Lobbyists’ Code.
6. Require in a new subsections of sections 5 and 7 of the Lobbying Act that all lobbyists take a formal training course from the Commissioner of Lobbying when they first registering as a lobbyist, and annually.
7. Change subsection 10.4(1) the Lobbying Act to give members of the public, who employ and pay all office holders, a clear legal right to file a complaint with the Commissioner of Lobbying.
8. Delete clauses 10.4(1.1)(b) to (d) in the Lobbying Act, and change sections 4 and 10.5 to require the Commissioner of Lobbying to investigate and issue a public ruling on every complaint the Commissioner receives and every situation the Commissioner becomes aware of that raises any questions about whether a lobbyist has complied with the Lobbying Act or Lobbyists’ Code.
9. Add a new subsection to section 10.5 that empowers and requires the Commissioner of Lobbying to impose a sliding scale of mandatory penalties (specifically listed in the new subsection) depending on the seriousness of any and all violations of the Lobbying Act or the Lobbyists’ Code, with a set mandatory fine and prohibition on lobbying for a specified time period imposed on every violator, and more significant fines and prohibitions for longer time periods as the mandatory penalties for more serious violations. In addition, change subsections 10.4(7) to (9) of the Act to specify that the Commissioner is only required to refer the most serious violations of the Act to police, and that the Commissioner is not required to suspend any investigation concerning a violation of the Act or Code even if the Commissioner refers a matter to police that involves a violation of another law. As well, subsection 10.4(4) of the Lobbying Act must be changed so that evidence gathered by the Commissioner can be used by police for a prosecution of a violation of that Act.
10. Add a new subsection to section 10.5 of the Lobbying Act giving any member of the public a clear right to apply in Federal Court for a judicial review of any decision made by the Commissioner of Lobbying under the Lobbying Act or Lobbyists’ Code.
Click here to see the list of secret lobbying loopholes that need to be closed in Canada’s lobbying laws, and click here to see the list of unethical lobbying loopholes that need to be closed.
Join the call for key changes to stop secret, unethical lobbying across Canada at Democracy Watch’s Stop Secret, Unethical Lobbying Campaign
