Here’s a look back at the news we covered this week:

The House ethics committee passed a motion on July 22 to invite Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to testify about his involvement with the cabinet decision to award a now-cancelled multi-million-dollar contract to WE Charity. The motion also orders that the records of fees for speaking engagements by Trudeau, his wife, mother and brother at WE Charity events be turned over to the committee and the federal ethics commissioner for study. The motion passed by a 6-5 margin, with Conservative MP and committee chair Rachael Harder submitting the tie-breaking vote. Trudeau already accepted an invitation to appear before the House finance committee next week to speak about WE Charity, on a date to be determined.

Simon Doyle, a former journalist whose writing has been found in The Hill Times, The Globe and Mail and The Financial Times, has joined Compass Rose Group as a public affairs counsellor. Doyle said he thinks he understands the “nuance of communications” from his professional experience covering politics and business. He is also a former instructor at Ottawa’s Carleton University where he taught business reporting. Doyle isn’t the only member of the Compass Rose team with connections to The Hill Times. Bea Vongdouangchanh, a former deputy editor for the Hill Times, has worked at Compass Rose as a public affairs counsellor since 2016.

Economic development was the top subject matter in federal lobbying in June. That subject appeared in 382 communication reports, followed by industry with 364 reports. Health came in third with that subject listed in 265 communication reports. June is the second consecutive month with economic development leading as the most frequent subject matter discussed on the Hill. The most active lobby group in June was the Canadian Manufacturers & Exporters, which filed 62 communication reports. Those reports included contact with Minister of Public Services and Procurement Anita Anand on June 18, Minister of Economic Development Mélanie Joly on June 23, and Minister of Labour Filomena Tassi on June 24.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau featured in five communication reports posted last week, including contact with three unions. More than 1,700 communication reports were posted to the registry between July 13 and July 19. Trudeau was contacted by the International Union of Operating Engineers on June 23. The union represents about 400,000 operating engineers in the construction industry, as well as stationary engineers who work in operations and maintenance in building and industrial complexes. Unifor, which represents more than 315,000 members across various sectors, contacted Trudeau on June 29. The last union to reach out to Trudeau was the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers First District, which contacted the prime minister on June 23.

In new registrations, Santha Technologies started its first file on July 13 with consultant Paul Tye of Sussex Strategy Group. The company, based in Toronto, would like to speak to the federal government about a software it has developed that provides services related to automated health screenings and contact tracing. Tye will communicate with the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO), Innovation, Transport, Health, Global Affairs Canada, and with MPs.

Adapt Media, a media supplier that helps companies with advertisement, started its first file on July 17 with consultant Henry Boyd of Stosic & Associates. The company would like to speak to the federal government about COVID-19-related support for small businesses to allow their operations to continue, the registry shows. Boyd will communicate with Innovation, the Business Development Bank of Canada, Export Development Canada, Shared Services Canada, and with MPs.

In health-related registrations, Qu Biologics, a biotechnology company in British Columbia, started its first on July 21 with consultants Katlyn Harrison and Joanne Dobson of Summa Strategies. Qu has developed an immunotherapy called site-specific immunomodulators

(SSI), which the company argues on its website may be useful for stimulating the immune response in individuals who lack resilient immune systems, such as the elderly.

Harrison and Dobson will communicate with the PMO, Health, Innovation, and with MPs.

New registry files

Based on a search of the federal lobbyists' registry on July 24 at 8:10 a.m.

New registrations

Reactivations