Welcome to The Lobby Monitor Weekly…

Here are this week’s stories: 

MONDAY: Communication Reports: Sept. 30, 2024, to Oct. 6, 2024

TUESDAY: Generation Squeeze’s report card gives Liberals ‘political cover’ for changes to help young people

WEDNESDAY: On Queen Street: Bluesky hires ex-Conservative staffers; Blackbird and Counsel bulk up federal practices

THURSDAY: ‘There’s not enough of us’: Women lobbyists mentor, launch companies to increase representation

IN THE HOUSE OF COMMONS: 

• MPs will continue to debate a Conservative motion related to the federal government’s alleged failure to produce documents concerning Sustainable Development Technology Canada. 

IN THE SENATE:  

• The Senate will resume on Tues. Oct. 15 at 2:00 p.m.

YOUR POLITICAL CALENDAR (ALL TIMES IN ET): Ministers are busy as we move into the holiday weekend…

First up at 9:00 a.m. are events for Indigenous Services Minister Patty Hajdu, Mental Health and Addictions Minister Ya’ara Saks, and Transport Minister Anita Anand. 

Saks is in Ottawa’s National Press Theatre to make an announcement regarding the toxic drug and overdose crisis, and support for municipalities and First Nations, Inuit and Métis communities.

Hajdu is in Thunder Bay, Ont., with David Paul Achneepineskum, CEO of Matawa First Nations Management Company, to highlight Matawa's Animal Services Pilot Project. 

Anand is in London, Ont., for an announcement about strengthening rail safety. 

At 10:00 a.m., Gudie Hutchings, the minister responsible for the Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency, is in Halifax to announce a multi-million dollar investment for local startups. 

In Mississauga, Ont., Inclusion Minister Kamal Khera will highlight funding under the Enabling Accessibility Fund at 11:00 a.m. She will be accompanied by Small Business Minister Rechie Valdez, and Liberal MPs Charles Sousa and Peter Fonseca. 

Harjit Sajjan, minister responsible for the Pacific Economic Development Agency of Canada, is in Richmond, B.C., at 10:00 a.m. to announce funding that will support two local businesses. Liberal MPs Parm Bains and Wilson Miao will also be in attendance. 

And on a final note, did you miss last Friday's registrations? The following is based on new registry files, registrations and reactivated files posted on the federal lobbyists' registry between Sept. 30, 2024, and Oct. 4, 2024. The information is based on a search of the registry on Oct. 4, at 9:00 a.m. ET.

Rural Prosperity Group formed by ex-MPs Bergen and Dawson lands on registry

NEW REGISTRY FILES

NEW REGISTRATION

REACTIVATIONS

Here’s the news we covered this week:

The Lobby Monitor was at the Canadian Agri-Food in a Sustainable World conference in Ottawa where we listened in on an industry panel discussing how agricultural producers looking to adopt sustainable practices can approach the federal government to gain its support. Kate Harrison, vice-chair at Summa Strategies, told attendees that they should frame their asks around mainstream issues and show the economic viability of their work. “For the last year, issues have been quite entrenched. It's housing and affordability, it’s the cost-of-living crisis, increasing crime and increasing growth, and that includes immigration,” she said. Also providing their insight at the panel were Alanna Koch, board chair at the Global Institute for Food Security, and Scott Ross, executive director at Canadian Federation of Agriculture.

In other live coverage (because tis the conference season), The Lobby Monitor was also in the audience at BIOTECanada’s annual event on Sept. 25. We heard Summa Strategies’ Tim Powers, Bluesky Strategy Group’s Susan Smith, and Monk and Associates’ Kathleen Monk discuss federal advocacy in the current political climate. The lobbyists told attendees that a multi-pronged strategy where GR professionals direct their asks to the current government while getting to know key politicians and staffers from the opposition parties is important right now in light of the uncertainty surrounding the next election date.

Crestview Strategy’s new vice-president Robin Guy spoke with The Lobby Monitor about how he plans to “continue to make sure that business views are well represented in Ottawa” by drawing on his past experience working for the federal Conservative Party and leading the Canadian Chamber of Commerce’s advocacy team. “Coming from a Conservative background, I will be trying to help people understand where a possible Conservative government might go [policy-wise], but I will also have the opportunity to help push things to the current government,” said Guy.

Turning to weekly communication reports, a lobby day focusing on safety and funding for public transit set the Canadian Urban Transit Association (CUTA) ahead of the pack of communication reports submitted the week of Sept. 23. CUTA submitted 30 reports for conversations that all took place on Sept. 26, 2024. Communications were submitted by its president and CEO Marco D’Angelo, and Impact Public Affairs consultant Alexis Morin.

In this week’s registrations, Rural Prosperity Group, which is looking to advocate for policies that support rural communities, is joining the registry for the first time. The organization is represented by Jacqueline LaRocque of Compass Rose. Rural Prosperity Group was founded by former Conservative MP Candice Bergen and now-retired senator Dennis Dawson.

Also joining the registry for the first time is Wohler Canada Inc., which is looking to engage with the federal government to discuss the impact of recently implemented tariffs on Chinese aluminum products. The company is represented by Christopher Froggatt, Dan Mader, and Dario Dimitriev of Loyalist Public Affairs. Wohler is an Ontario-based manufacturer of aluminum products.

Toronto-based The Bentway returns to the federal registry to meet with parliamentarians and learn about “the government's perspective on public spaces for artistic, cultural, and recreational events.” Representing the organization is Kyle Jacobs of Navigator Ltd. The Bentway is a non-profit civic organization that hosts various community events in a public space located beneath a major highway in Toronto’s downtown core.

The following are new registry files, registrations and reactivated files posted on the federal lobbyists' registry between Sept. 30, 2024, and Oct. 4, 2024. The information is based on a search of the registry on Oct. 4, at 9:00 a.m. ET.

NEW REGISTRY FILES

NEW REGISTRATION

REACTIVATIONS