NDP Ethics and Democracy Critic David Forbes slammed the Sask. Party government for failing to close a loophole in the lobbyist act in legislation they tabled today.
“A smaller loophole isn't good enough,” said Forbes. “Under the new threshold, a lobbyist could meet a Minister for coffee every single week for more than six months without anybody knowing.
“These amendments let Saskatchewan people down by failing to fix the holes in our outdated rulebook. The Sask. Party just keeps looking out for the wealthy and well-connected instead of doing what's right for Saskatchewan people.”
New amendments to the lobbyist act have lowered the threshold at which a company needs to register as a lobbyist from 100 hours to 30. Forbes said the threshold should simply be eliminated, so that all lobbying activity is on the public record. Registrar of Lobbyists Ron Barclay has made the same call.
“The Sask. Party has a long history of skirting the rules and falling short of what people expect,” said Forbes. “By failing to implement these long-overdue changes, the Sask. Party government is letting people down yet again.”