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

Survivors of the decades-long “purge” of 2SLGBTQI+ Canadians working in the federal public sector shared their stories with parliamentarians during an Oct. 27 lobby day in an effort to improve workplace inclusion in the federal bureaucracy, military, and RCMP. “I am still surprised at the level of the lack of [public] awareness about such a profound period in Canadian history,” said Michelle Douglas, executive director of the LGBT Purge Fund. Douglas said the organization visited the Hill to stress the urgency of enacting the recommendations of the May 2021 Emerging From The Purge report. The document includes 23 recommendations for all federal workplaces.

Two of the organizations lobbying MPs and senators for changes to the government’s proposed modernization of the Broadcasting Act are using the personal experiences of members and content creators in an attempt to stand out from the crowd of stakeholders interested in discussing the bill. The Canadian Media Producers Association (CMPA) and TikTok Canada are two of the 73 organizations that have appeared before parliamentary committees studying Bill C-11, the Online Streaming Act. The CMPA is also one of 30 groups that mention C-11 by name in active lobbyists’ registry files. The Lobby Monitor spoke to the two organizations about their lobbying efforts.

TACT has expanded its life sciences service offering with the addition of Dan Cooper as vice-president of scientific affairs, pharmacoeconomics and market access. Meanwhile, after three years as an associate at Santis Health, Ben King is taking on a new role as director of digital health and innovation. Santis announced the new position in a press release on Nov. 1. King will help the firm “meet the needs of its clients who are increasingly looking to evolve their digital health portfolios,” states the press release.

Wal-Mart Canada Corp. posted eight of the 147 communication reports submitted to the federal lobbyists’ registry last week. The corporation, which operates under the name Walmart Canada, is represented on the registry by interim CEO JP Suarez, as well as Prospectus Associates consultants William Pristanski, Bruce Hartley, and Martin-Pierre Pelletier. Walmart communicated with Rebecca Caldwell, senior policy adviser to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, on Sept. 29; Alan Ning, Trudeau’s regional adviser for Ontario, on Sept. 9 and Sept. 29; Blake Oliver, senior policy adviser to Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland, on Sept. 12; and Julie Van Drie, director of policy to Labour Minister Seamus O’Regan, on Sept. 22. 

In new registrations, the Government Services Union (GSU) joined the registry on Oct. 28 with national president Bruce Roy. GSU represents approximately 11,000 public service workers at Public Services and Procurement Canada, Shared Services Canada, and the Royal Canadian Mint, and is part of the Public Service Alliance of Canada (PSAC). According to its registry file, GSU is interested in discussing the contracting and outsourcing of public service employment, as well as the use of temporary help services by the government. The union also wants to discuss damages and compensation related to the Phoenix pay system, public-private partnerships related to government buildings, and child care policies. In addition to Public Services, Shared Services, and the Treasury Board, Roy is interested in communicating with the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) and senators. 

Also new to the registry is the Nunavik Regional Board of Health and Social Services (NRBHSS), which organizes health and social services programs for the 14 communities in Quebec’s far northern Nunavik region. NRBHSS has hired independent consultant Raphael Tixier to represent it in discussions with the Canada Housing and Mortgage Corporation (CMHC). According to its French-language registry file, the board is seeking infrastructure-related support from the federal government to assist with its provision of social services to the population of Nunavik.

Bell Canada has boosted its representation on the Hill, with the addition of Rubicon Strategies consultants Andrew Balfour, Don Newman, and Elizabeth Roscoe on Oct. 26. The Rubicon consultants join Bell Canada president and CEO Mirko Bibic, who has represented the company since Jan. 6, 2020, and consultant John Turnbull of CFN Consultants, who first registered on Aug. 19, 2019. Bell Canada’s file lists 25 subjects that the telco plans to discuss with parliamentarians, including amendments to the Broadcasting Act, broadband programs, government procurement, and regulatory modernization of the Canada Labour Code. Balfour, Newman, and Roscoe plan to communicate with 32 government institutions, including the PMO, Finance, Innovation, Heritage, and the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission, as well as with MPs and senators.

New registry files

Based on a search of the federal lobbyists' registry on Nov. 4 at 9:07 a.m. ET

New registrations

Reactivations