Damien Kurek, the MP who vacated his seat in Battle River-Crowfoot so Pierre Poilievre could claw his way back to Parliament, has a new job — shilling for the coal mining industry.
A little more than a month after Poilievre won the seat in an August 19 byelection, Kurek registered as a consultant lobbyist with Upstream Strategy Group, a Toronto-based communications, public relations and lobbying firm.
Lobbyists are required to register with the Office of the Commissioner of Lobbying in Canada (Lobby Canada.) According to Kurek’s registration, his client is Valory Resources Inc., a coal mining company headquartered in Vancouver but with Australian leadership.
Bonnie Critchley, the Canadian military veteran who ran against Poilievre in the Battle River-Crowfoot byelection, said Kurek may be walking a razor’s edge as a recently resigned Member of Parliament now going to bat as a lobbyist for a coal company.
“He is not legally allowed to be a lobbyist and he’s not allowed to lobby anybody for five years after his retirement from the Government,” Critchley told TheRockies.Life in a Zoom interview.
MPs not legally allowed to work as a lobbyist for five years after retiring
The rules are clear. According to Lobby Canada, designated public office holders, which includes members of the Houses of Commons and Senate, parliamentary staff, government workers and members of the RCMP and Armed Forces, are prohibited from lobbying for a period of five years after leaving their jobs.
Critichley also has big concerns about this former MP lobbying for coal mining on the Eastern Slopes.
“I’m not against all coal mining everywhere. Alberta does need to transition but we’re not there yet,” Critchley said. “However, if we’re talking about any of the Eastern Slopes projects, that’s where we start having problems, because now we’re talking headwaters.”
Kurek going to bat for a coal company wanting to open a new mine on the Eastern Slopes
Valory Resources is the company behind Mine 14, a proposed underground coal mine near Grande Cache in the headwaters of the Smoky River. As previously reported in TheRockies.Life, Valory convinced the Alberta Energy Regulator’s CEO Rob Morgan to overrule his own staff and cancel a public hearing into MIne 14 that was scheduled for this October.
The Alberta Wilderness Association and Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society were planning to make presentations at the hearing. The two groups have launched a legal challenge of Morgan’s decision and are asking Alberta’s appeal court to overturn Morgan’s decision.
Kurek’s new job as a coal industry lobbyist comes at a time when the Alberta government continues reviewing coal mine applications without a plan to guide where, when and what type of coal mining can happen on the Eastern Slopes.
Last December the province announced that it would develop a Coal Industry Modernization Initiative in consultation with industry but has still not released a final plan.
Kurek joined Upstream not long after announcing his resignation
In an interview with Northern Perspective in early July, Kurek said he was stepping down to give Poilievre a pathway back to Parliament, to help run the family farm following his father’s passing last September, and to spend more time with his three young boys.
Days before this interview, Upstream Strategy Group announced in a media release that Kurek was joining the company.
“As the Calgary Stampede kicks off, we’re beyond excited to announce Damien’s new role with Upstream and our continued growth across the country,” said Chris Chapin, Managing Principal of Upstream Strategy Group, in the release.. “His deep roots in Alberta paired with his legislative expertise make him the perfect fit to deliver strategic value to our clients in Western Canada.”
When Kurek registered with Lobby Canada in September, it showed Valory Resources Inc as his client.TheRockies.Life reached out to both Damien Kurek and Upstream Strategy Group for comment about his role as a lobbyist but did not get a response.
