Democracy Watch teed off

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by Kristian Gravenor

A decision by Canada's Ethics Commissioner to exonerate BCE boss Jean Monty for lavishing the PM with a gift--a round of golf with Tiger Woods--has Democracy Watch's Duff Conacher in a fighting mood. "We're trying to get a prohibition on gifts being used to influence politicians," says Conacher. On September 5, Jean Chrétien hit a round on Ile-Bizard with Woods on the invite of BCE boss Jean Monty as part of the Bell Canadian Open. Chrétien's $13,000 entrance fee and whatever undisclosed appearance fee Woods may have been paid were covered by the phone giant. Tournament organizers had earlier denied a report that Woods had accepted $2-million (U.S.) to come to Montreal for the Open.

Prior to the first drive, Ethics Counsellor Howard Wilson overruled Duff's objection that Monty's generosity ran afoul of Section 8 of the lobbyist code, which bars lobbyists from putting elected officials in a conflict of interest. A problem with our system, according to Conacher, is that a lobbyist can only be condemned if a minister is first declared to be in a conflict of interest. And it's the PM himself who gets final say in declaring ministerial conflict. Democracy Watch is challenging the Wilson decision in court and aims to have his responsibilities in monitoring politicians--a role created 1994--separated from his duties of scrutinizing lobbyists, which was tacked on later. Conacher expects Chrétien's folks to delay the case but hopes for a verdict within 18 months.