Today, Public Eye reported in the Times Colonist that uber provincial Liberal backroom boy Pat Kinsella is denying two-year-old allegations he worked as a lobbyist for Alcan Inc. (among many other companies). One of those who could back-up that denial is former Competition, Science and Enterprise Minister Rick Thorpe, who previously had responsibility for the Alcan file.

But, when Terrace Standard writer Jeff Nagel originally asked the minister about those allegations, it looks like he dodged the question by saying, "Are we trying to talk here about the future of the northwest or are we just trying to cause conflict? I'm trying to bring people together to build a spirit of cooperation and partnership." As a result, Public Eye wanted to discuss this issue with him further. But, so far, Minister Thorpe hasn't returned repeated calls from Public Eye. According to ministry staff, he is currently away from the legislature and, therefore, evidently unreachable.