Liberal lobbyists line up to influence Holt government

New Brunswick's registry of lobbyists has seen a wave of new filings from Liberal-connected consultants looking to influence Premier Susan Holt's Liberal government on behalf of paying clients.

Since Holt took power last fall, two former Liberal premiers, Brian Gallant and Shawn Graham, have registered new clients seeking to influence government policy.

Three former Liberal cabinet ministers and two former advisers have also registered new clients since Holt was sworn in.

Progressive Conservative Opposition Leader Glen Savoie highlighted Gallant's Feb. 28 registration to lobby for Aecon Group Inc., a major construction company that has worked on nuclear power and natural gas projects, among others.

In his filing, Gallant said he wanted to organize meetings with Infrastructure Minister Chuck Chiasson and N.B. Power CEO Lori Clark to promote Aecon's "corporate brand awareness and capabilities."

Holt worked for a job-creation secretariat created by Gallant when he was premier.

"Her former boss Brian Gallant said at every turn that perception matters," Savoie said.

"So now here he is lobbying his former employee as a lobbyist. What's the perception on that?"

Gallant forced out one of his MLAs, Donald Arseneault, in 2017 for taking on lobbying work while sitting as a backbencher. Lobbying rules allowed it, but Gallant said it would be seen as a conflict of interest.

Savoie suggested Gallant might help Aecon secure a contract to build a new N.B. Power natural gas power plant in Scoudouc that was announced last December.

Holt said she did not know whether Aecon had the contract and said she had never met with the company.

WATCH | 'What's the perception on that?': Opposition on Liberal lobbyists 

Liberal lobbyists take on new clients after Holt election win

4 days ago

Duration 2:28

Two former premiers are among the consultants working for companies hoping to influence decision-makers. A previous version of this video included an incorrect reference to former Liberal cabinet minister Doug Tyler, who in fact has not taken on new clients since last year's election.

"Our ministers meet with community groups, not-for-profits, citizens, certainly staff of the government, front-line workers, without lobbyists at all," Holt told reporters. "The presence of a lobbyist does not determine who gets what meeting when.

"If a company wants to ask [for a meeting] themselves, or pay somebody to ask for them, it's still treated the same."

Asked in that case why a company would need to pay lobbyists, the premier said, "It's a great question. I'm not sure." 

In a written statement to CBC News, Gallant said he became "an advisor" to Aecon in early 2024, before the Liberals won the election.

He did not register, however, until Feb. 28 of this year. The law requires lobbyists to register "within 15 days after commencing performance of an undertaking on behalf of a client."

"Aecon has done work in Atlantic Canada and has the capabilities to do more in the region, including in New Brunswick," he wrote.

Aecon did not respond to a request for comment.

Gallant's February registration is his first ever in the public lobbyist registry, which has existed since 2017.

Former Liberal premier Shawn Graham, a longtime lobbyist, added two new clients to his roster since Holt took power last year.

He now represents Fertility Partners Inc., a Moncton clinic, and Global University Systems Canada, a for-profit chain of universities that operates three medical schools in the Caribbean. 

Graham said in an email his work with Fertility Partners is to help establish a research centre at the Université de Moncton and is unconnected to Holt's recent announcement about funding for one round of in vitro fertilization for New Brunswickers.

In his registration for Global University Systems Canada, Graham says he would meet with Health Minister John Dornan about an initiative to "help address the family physician shortage by offering fully funded medical school education to provincial citizens."

Graham turned down a request for an interview.

Holt said in question period Friday that she itemizes all her official meetings in social-media videos she releases every Monday.

She questioned whether there's a link between a Liberal government taking office and Liberal-connected consultants taking on new clients.

"You'd have to look at the history to see if that's the case," she said.

"I'm sure somebody could probably do the data to see if there's correlation between new registrations and changes in governments." 

The premier suggested having Liberal connections may actually be a disadvantage, because her office may hesitate over how it might look to help someone with connections.

Savoie also flagged Holt's links to Jordan O'Brien, a former chief of staff to Gallant with a long list of current and former lobbying clients.

Since Holt was elected, O'Brien has started lobbying for Populus Plus, a health technology company, and the Fredericton International Airport.

Last fall, Liberal insider Maurice Robichaud, a former communications adviser to Graham and to an earlier Liberal premier, Frank McKenna, registered as a lobbyist for the Convenience Industry Council of Canada.

The organization opposed a Liberal bill to repeal the "cost of carbon adjustor" surcharge on gasoline put in place by the Blaine Higgs government that passes the cost of federal clean-fuel regulations to consumers.

The council argued repealing the surcharge would leave gas wholesalers and retailers absorbing the cost instead.

A week after Robichaud registered, the Liberals put the bill on hold.

Greg Byrne, a former Liberal cabinet minister and one-time chief of staff to Gallant, also registered to lobby for the council, the records show.

Robichaud, meanwhile, is also registered to lobby for Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners, a wind energy company, and the New Brunswick Pharmacists' Association.

Donald Arseneault, a Liberal cabinet minister in Graham and Gallant Liberal governments, has registered four new clients since the start of 2025.

They include the Energy Alliance of the North, an organization of regional service commissions and First Nations that Arseneault says in his registration is seeking changes to provincial laws so it can bid to launch renewable energy projects to supply N.B. Power.

Another of his clients is Groupe Lebel, a company that owns a sawmill in Tobique Valley that "has planned various capital projects and is looking for government financial assistance, along with increased Crown wood allocations," the filing says.

The two other new clients are the University of Fredericton, a private institution, and the Northern New Brunswick Airport Authority Inc., which operates the Bathurst airport.

Holt promised in last fall's election campaign to "modernize and strengthen the lobbyist registry to enhance transparency and accountability."

Holt revealed Friday that her government is ending its $19,000 US a month contract with lobbyists in Washington who were hired earlier this year to lobby the Trump administration and members of Congress on tariffs.

She said the contract, which began Feb. 3, had served its purpose. "The relationships and the connections have now been made."

O'Brien's firm subcontracted the U.S. firm and earned a $6,000 US monthly commission for doing so.