Lobbying activities in Ottawa – including the Prime Minister’s Office and Justin Trudeau himself – reached new heights at all levels in the 2022-23 fiscal year.
Between April 2022 and March 2023, the Prime Minister’s Office held communications with lobbyists 1,602 times, while last year the figure climbed to 1,117, reveals the annual report of the Office of the Commissioner of Lobbying, released Tuesday.
Mr. Trudeau, for his part, took part in lobbying activities 56 times during the same period.
“The number of registrations and registered lobbyists continues to grow each year, and 2022-2023 was no exception. The same is true for the communication reports filed in the Registry which, once again, set a new record,” observes Commissioner Nancy Bélanger.
However, lobbying extends far beyond the Prime Minister’s Office: it is mainly Members of Parliament and staff working for ministers, such as deputy ministers, who are mainly targeted by lobbyists.
The number of active lobbyists currently registered in Ottawa is 6,939, of which 2,313 are from private sector companies.
In addition, a record 30,681 communication reports were filed over 12 months, including 4,122 for the month of November alone.
This “represents an increase of 19% compared to 2021-2022 and 5% compared to the previous record set in 2020-2021”, notes the commissioner.
This figure is even more striking when compared with the first years when the filing of communications reports was made compulsory. In its first year in 2008-2009, only 5,333 had been filed. Then, between 2010 and 2015, the average number was between 11,000 and 12,000, before doubling after the Liberals came to power in 2015.
The year was particularly active on the environmental front, a subject which ranks first among the sectors subject to lobbying, followed by Economic Development and Energy.
The number of registrations in the register has also increased.
The OPC released 9120 registrations, which includes new registrations such as reactivations and updates.
“This is equivalent to an average of 760 registrations per month, an increase of 12% compared to the previous year,” explains Commissioner Bélanger.