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

Four organizations are active on the federal lobbyists’ registry with an interest in discussing Bill C-7, which would make amendments to the Criminal Code in regards to medical assistance in dying (MAID). Dying with Dignity Canada, represented on the registry by CEO Helen Long, has filed 10 communication reports since March, mostly targeting the Justice department by communicating on six occasions with Olivier Jarda, a policy adviser to Minister of Justice David Lametti. The bill was developed in response to a ruling from the Quebec Superior Court in September 2019, which stated that provisions of the existing assisted-dying laws at both the federal and Quebec levels are unconstitutional. The federal government has until Dec. 18 to amend the original legislation.

The number of women in the House of Commons reached triple digits on Oct. 26 thanks to the win of both Liberal candidates in two Toronto-area by-elections. A trend of greater representation of women in the House has the potential to flow downward, resulting in greater representation within GR firms, according to Patricia Sibal, a consultant at Crestview Strategy. Megan Lockhart, the director of digital and advocacy strategy at National Public Relations, told The Lobby Monitor she’s observed employers in the GR space hiring with a focus on greater representation of women and minorities in the last several years.

Julia Ilashchuk, a former parliamentary assistant in the office of Conservative MP and ethics critic Michael Barrett, joined the Canadian Canola Growers Association (CCGA) as co-ordinator of government relations and parliamentary affairs. The CCGA’s largest priority is to advocate for changes to AgriStability, a business risk management program under the Canadian Agricultural Partnership. The CCGA would like the federal government to revise the program’s eligibility criteria in order to increase the number of farmers who can benefit.

The Canadian Psychological Association (CPA) was the most active lobbying organization last week, with seven communication reports posted. The CPA reached out to seven MPs in this month, including Liberal MP Ruby Sahota, chair of the procedure and House affairs committee, on Oct. 5 to discuss the role of the federal government in mental health, including possible investments. The CPA’s representatives discussed their six recommendations for the 2021 budget, which were released publicly on Aug. 6.

In new registrations, Sona Nanotech, a nanotechnology company based in Nova Scotia, started its first file on Oct. 26 with consultant Joanne Dobson of Summa Strategies. Dobson’s colleague, Jeremy Bruce, was added on Oct. 28. The company has developed a rapid COVID-19 test, which it claims on its website is capable of delivering results within 15 minutes. Sona has submitted an application to Health Canada for an interim order authorization of its test, according to a press release. Dobson and Bruce will communicate with the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO), Health, Innovation, Public Services and Procurement Canada, and with MPs.

ATES Medical, a medical supply company based in Quebec, started its first file on Oct. 9 with consultant Michel Côté of Gestion Innova-Nord Inc. The company is interested in obtaining a supply contract from Health, so that it may proceed with building a factory to manufacture masks and other medical products. Côté will communicate with Health and the Public Health Agency of Canada.

The Hotel Association of Canada (HAC) strengthened its registry file by adding consultant Alex Shieck of Impact Public Affairs on Oct. 27. Shieck joins eight other consultants from Impact on the file, as well as seven consultants from StrategyCorp. The HAC is interested in speaking with the federal government about the development of a federal tourism strategy, as well as support for the temporary foreign workers program, the registry shows. Shieck will communicate with the PMO, Finance, Innovation, Immigration, Transport, as well as senators and MPs.

New registry files

Based on a search of the federal lobbyists' registry on Oct. 30 at 9:15 a.m.

New registrations

Reactivations