The Ottawa Citizen from Ottawa, Ontario, Canada • 3

THIS OTTAWA CITIZEN BREAKING NEWS AT OnAWACITIZEN.COM MONDAY, FEBRUARY 22, 2010 A3 CANADA ,101 rwWy 4u in VA Ml I il Scholar dehunks Arctic conflict Says international co-operation in harvesting riches far more likely BY IAN MACLEOD I il rT JULIE OLIVER, THE OTTAWA CITIZEN The halls of power inside the Hill are the express lane to a job in Ottawa's lobbying business, show a Citizen review of lobbying disclosure data. Round and round they go The Harper government sought to close the revolving door between politics and Ottawa's lobbying business. However, GLEN MCGREGOR discovers that experience on the Hill is still the express lane to a job with a lobbying firm. An Arctic thaw among Cold War foes means there will be no foreseeable major conflict over seabed resources, says a leading Arctic scholar. Michael Byers, writing in Canada's new world affairs magazine Global Brief, says polar politics and media hype about a potential international clash over undersea oil and gas reserves obscure the reality of growing strategic co-operation among Canada, the U.S., Russia, Denmark and Norway.

"Whatever future the Arctic holds, it will likely be based on co-operation, consent and international law. There is no race for Arctic resources, and no appetite for conflict," writes Byers, a Canada Research Chair in global politics and international law at the University of British Columbia and author of Who Owns the Arctic? The anticipated melt-out of summer Arctic sea-ice is expected to make the Arctic Ocean navigable year-round as early as 2013, opening vast opportunities for shipping, trade and oil and gas development. The U.S. Geological Survey estimates the seabed holds 83 billion barrels of oil and 44 trillion cubic metres of natural gas, most of which Byers notes are in shallow areas within the uncontested jurisdiction of one or another coastal state and unlikely to be the subject of international disputes. In response to what he calls widespread misreporting about the possibility of conflict over seabed resources, Denmark hosted a 2008 summit of the Arctic Ocean coastal states.

It "culminated with all five countries reaffirming their commitment to resolving disputes peacefully within the existing framework of international law." Just last week, the Canadian government opened the door to resolving a decades-old territorial dispute with the United States, which claims sovereignty over a Lake Ontario-sized section of the Beaufort Sea that Canada deems part of the Yukon's coastal waters. Byers, "demystifies a lot of the national or narcissistic rhetoric and tells a pretty anti-climactic story about strategic co-operation in which Canada will come out quite healthy," says Irvin Studin, publisher and editor in-chief of Global Brief, which debuted online the falL Its inaugural quarterly, print edition is to hit Chap ters and other stores March Studin, a former Privy Council Office staffer and co author of Canada's 2004 na tional security policy, says the hope is to build the magazine into Canada's answer to The Economist. Global Brief 'targets a global readership with the works of top and up-and coming global writers dealing with international politics, business, culture, movements and trends. "The fundamen tal mandate is to create a foreign affairs culture or literacy in Canada, where I think there's quite a desert out there right now," says Studin. Goingin circles Lobbyists are required to declare past public offices they've held when they register with the Office of the Commissioner of Lobbying.

The data is online, but it is difficult to navigate the site to see how many former Hill staff are lobbying. Two years ago, the Citizen requested the raw data from the lobbyist database through the Access to Information Act. Industry Canada initially refused to release it, saying it was already in the public domain. The Citizen complained to the Information Commissioner of Canada. After a mediation session last year, the lobbying commissioner's office finally provided the information last week.

The data show that other Tory staff who went on to lobbying roles after the 2006 election include: Robin Speer: Worked in the MP's office of Gerry Ritz until September 2006, before Ritz was named agriculture minister. Speer had also worked in MP Rob Anders' constituency office and in the office of then-leader of the opposition Stock-well Day. He now lobbies for Que-becor the University of Alberta and United Jewish Appeal Federation of Greater Toronto. Bryan Rogers: Worked in the office of Stephen Harper until 2004, then became executive assistant in the parliamentary office of MP Jason Kenney, now citizenship and immigration minister. Rogers left the Hill in 2007 to join Hill and Knowl-, ton, with Procter Gamble Inc.

and AIG among his clients, then joined Scotiabank as manager of government relations in Ottawa. Meaghan Rusnell: Legislative assistant to MP Rick Dykstra. She left the Hill in 2008 and began lobbying with Playbook Communications, a Toronto-based firm with Tory ties. She listed as clients Google Inc. and the Economic Club of Canada.

rent cabinet ministers he knew from his nine years on the HilL "When you spend that long, you become part of the Conservative family and you get to know people on a level outside the parliamentary precinct" He says he considered the fact that working for a minister would mean he couldn't work in government relations for five years. But because he never did, there was nothing in the law to stop him from working as a lobbyist Chandra Pasma worked as an executive assistant to MP Dave MacKenzie until October 2006 and is now registered to lobby members of the House of Commons and several government departments on behalf of Citizens For Public Justice, a faith-based policy research organization. She says her past gives her no special access, but it might be different for parliamentary aides who worked for ministers. "Generally, people who work for MPs who are also ministers are doing a lot of clerical work," she said. "I guess they wouldn't have inside information.

They'd still have inside contacts." But Kevin Macintosh, who worked as a parliamentary executive assistant to MP Rob Nicholson, now minister of justice, says it's his 10 years on the Hill that helps him as a lobbyist "I have a fair bit of experience in government and politics. That's what helped me versus any personal relationships." Macintosh left Nicholson's MP office in March 2006 and now counts Shaw Communications, Teck Coal Limited Inc. and the Turkish Embassy as client On behalf of Visa Canada, he st year spoke to Finance Ministi jim Flaherty, according to communication logs. One of Baird's aides left his job in the MP's office for a government-relations job. Fitti Lourenco worked as the Ottawa West-Nepean MP's constituency communications assistant until April 2008.

He joined Hill and Knowlton and today lobbies for a diverse list of clients, including the Canadian Olympic Committee and the Athabasca Oil Sands Corporation. On behalf of his clients, Lourenco has arranged contacts with Agriculture Minister Gerry Ritz and junior cabinet ministers Gary Lunn and Lynn Yelich. A Hill and Knowlton spokeswoman says Lourenco is fully in compliance with the lobbying rules and says the law was never intended to stop Hill staff from working as lobbyists. "Parliament's intent was very clear," said Laura Tupper. "The people they intended to restrict were those who worked in ministerial offices." Despite the Harper government's promise to close the revolving door between politics and Ottawa's lobbying business, more than a dozen former aides to Conservative MPs have gone on to work as lobbyists.

The Federal Accountability Act, the first piece of legislation introduced by the Tories when they were elected in 2006, prescribed a five-year cooling off period for ministerial staff and other public-office holders before they can work as lobbyists. But the law was silent about staff members who worked for cabinet ministers or other MPs in their capacity as parliamentarians as local representatives rather than as ministers. Though they may have close connections to political insiders, those staffers are not considered public-office holders and are exempt from the lobbying restriction. A Citizen review of lobbying disclosure data shows that, since the Conservatives took office in February 2006, 14 aides who worked for Tory MPs have registered to lobby the government on behalf of clients such as Visa Canada and Scotia-bank. Among them are former aides to MPs John Baird and Jason Kenney, now key players in the cabinet.

In opposition, the Tories accused the Liberals of allowing staff to trade on their contacts and reputations in the political world when they went to work in the "government relations" business. Of particular interest was Earnscliffe, a lobbying and communications firm that then enjoyed close ties to finance minister and later prime minister Paul Martin. Since 2006, many former Liberal staffers have also left the Hill to join lobbying shops. But, without a Liberal government in power, they are not as attractive to potential clients hoping to exert influence on the Conservative government Strictly speaking, even Conservative ministerial staff could have legally left their jobs and become lobbyists up until the Federal Accountability Act passed in December 2006. But the government said it expected ministerial staff to abide by the spirit of the legislation until it came into force.

Even after the prohibition was put in place, MPs' staffers continued to literally cross the street from Parliament Hill and legally take jobs with lobby firms clustered in downtown Ottawa. Some brought with them person- Joshua McJannett: Worked as co-ordinator of committees for Chief Government Whip Jay Hill until September 2007. Now lobbies with Summa Strategies on behalf of Magna International and the United Way. The federal ethics commissioner approved his move, the lobbying firm told the Citizen in 2008. Stephen McDonald: Worked as an aide to Tory MP Scott Reid until 2008.

Now lobbies for Readers Digest, Greyhound Canada and the Association of Canadian Distillers. David Granovsky: Was an aide to MP Deepak Obhrai until 2004, left to work as a lobbyist, then returned to the Hill in 2007 as special assistant for parliamentary affairs in the MP's office of junior cabinet minister Josee Verner. He is an in-house lobbyist with the Co-operative Housing Federation of Canada. Gisele Taylor: Worked for Tory MPs Gerald Keddy, Rob Moore and Garth Turner and, until 2008, as executive assistant to Patrick Brown. She joined lobby firm Temple Scott and represented the Canadian Petroleum Products Institute and Emirates Airline.

She has left the firm. Eric Lamoureux: Worked on the Hill from 2003 to 2007, lastly with Ontario Tory Joe Preston. Now a government relations and public affairs adviser with the Canadian Automobile Association. (A different Eric Lamoureux worked on the Hill until 2006 and went on to be chief of staff to Mayor Larry O'Brien.) Daniel Dufort: An aide to MP Guy Lauzon for eight months before leaving last November to join GCI Group and lobby the government on behalf of Nexter Group Systems, a defence contractor. Jason Roth: Executive assistant to Tory MP Ken Epp until 2007.

Was registered briefly as a lobbyist with the Northern Alberta Institute of Technology. Railways, among others. Casey says while MP staff members can develop personal relationships with cabinet ministers, there is some distinction between MP staff and those who work in ministers' offices. "The big difference is that you haven't had the access to them in the ministerial position and the ability to have access to information you wouldn't be seeing in a backbencher or opposition MP's office." Casey notes that, though he never worked for a minister, he has played hockey with five or six cur al relationships with MPs in cabinet, but carried none of the post-employment restrictions that applied to some senior public servants or to "exempt" political staff in ministers' offices not covered by public-service staffing rules. Sean Casey worked for MPs Randy White, Paul Forseth, and Patrick Brown and also spent time in communications and operations in then-Opposition leader Stephen Harper's office; He left the Hill in 2007 to join True North Public AffairsToday, he represents cigarette-maker JTI Macdonald Corporation, DAVE Wireless and CN Lottery corporations take gamble on online poker already exist, and forecasts it will make about $50 million by 2012.

The gambling website will be launched in partnership with the Atlantic and B.C. lottery corporations, both of which already have their own online ventures. Loto-Quebec's site will be available throughout the three regions, but it will be up to each corporation to cater it toward their province, according to an Atlantic Lottery spokeswoman. The Ontario Gaming and Lottery Corp. has spent a "considerable amount of time" investigating whether it wants to pursue online gambling.

"No decision has been made," said spokesman Rui Brum, adding it will be up to the new board of directors to decide if they want to go in this direction. CANWESTNEWS SERVICE 845 Carling Ave. at Preston St. IXViHnnriA I- 800-NEW-HONDA II- 800-639-4663) IMi I www.dowhonda.com howda Jeff Derevensky, co-founder of the International Centre for Youth Gambling Problems and High Risk Behaviours at McGill University. "They're addicted to the revenue.

There is no great social consciousness. This is a money-making operation, that's quite clear." He estimates that the online-gambling industry is worth about $12 billion a year worldwide. Loto-Quebec is the latest body to announce an online poker website, which will launch in the fall. The lottery corporation expects this new site to counter the thousands of illegal gambling sites that TORONTO Some lottery corporations across Canada are starting to place their bets on the once-underground world of online gambling, hoping that government-endorsed games will provide some credibility to the unregulated industry. But critics say an industry that has led some players to lose pay-cheques, lie to their families and ultimately become consumed by addiction will be a high-stakes venture from which not everyone will emerge a winner.

"It's our governments that are the most addicted to gambling," said Dr. I 1 1.