VICTORIA – In a letter to Commissioner David Loukidelis, NDP Attorney General Critic Leonard Krog formally requested an investigation into the lobbying activities of Jamie Elmhirst, the former president of the Liberal Party of Canada (BC) and former Campbell government staffer.



“The act is very explicit,” said Krog. “A consultant lobbyist must register within 10 days of entering into a contract to lobby on behalf of a client. We know from comments made by Mr. Gara Hay, Vice-President of Operations for Canadian Springs, that Mr. Elmhirst undertook to lobby the Campbell government on behalf of that company more than three months ago, yet Mr. Elmhirst only registered his lobbying activity commencing July 1st.”



Until early this year Mr. Elmhirst served as President of the Liberal Party of Canada (BC). Mr. Elmhirst also held a political staff position in the Minister of the Environment’s office in the Campbell government for several years before he left government to work at Pilothouse Public Affairs, a lobbying firm owned by Brian Kieran and Eric Bornmann. That company has since closed its doors.



“Mr. Elmhirst has a long history of working with the people inside the Campbell government, and I can appreciate that his knowledge might be important to those seeking to capture the government’s attention,” said Krog, the MLA for Nanaimo . “But the public has every right to expect that lobbying, whether on behalf of a corporation or any other interest, be conducted in a transparent way.”



Krog noted that New Democrat Leader Carole James has introduced a motion to compel government to amend the Lobbyist Registration Act to ensure greater accountability in the industry, including a code of conduct that would hold lobbyists to specific standards and protect the public interest from abuse.



“I’m asking the Commissioner to review Mr. Elmhirst’s activity specifically on behalf of Canadian Springs as well as any other lobbying he may be conducting on behalf of other clients that he has yet to register for,” said Krog.



Krog filed a letter to Information and Privacy Commissioner David Loukidelis, as well as copies of media reports and other substantiating evidence. In May, Loukidelis, who is responsible for administering the Lobbyists Registration Act, found that the premier’s advisor, Ken Dobell, had not filed lobbying activities within the deadline set by the Act.