Prince Edward Island abandons bill to soften ethics rules after backlash

Lobster boats, loaded with pots and buoys, head from West Dover, N.S., on Nov. 29, 2022, for the opening of the season in Lobster Fishing Area 33. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Andrew Vaughan

CHARLOTTETOWN — Prince Edward Island’s Progressive Conservatives have abandoned a much-criticized effort to soften conflict of interest rules that would have allowed a lobster fisher to serve in cabinet, a reversal applauded by the Opposition.

Facing political pressure and after deliberating with the Tory caucus, Brendan Curran said Thursday he decided to withdraw his bill for the time being.

“There were some concerns raised by the conflict of interest commissioner and some folks about the bill and we want to ensure that we do this right,” he told The Canadian Press.

The effort by the Tories to change the province’s ethics rules started with the resignation from cabinet of Sidney MacEwen, a decades-long lobster fisher who has served as a member of the legislature for 11 years.

But in April, only two months after he was named the Island’s transportation minister, he was forced to choose between cabinet and his lucrative fishing licence.

Provincial rules prohibit cabinet ministers from managing a business, forcing them to put their interests in a blind trust. But federal Fisheries Department regulations require fishers to be physically on their boat when it’s out on the water. That put MacEwen in a bind because his fishing licence prohibits him from hiring a third party to operate his business -- and he was unable to acquire an exemption.

Days before the minister resigned, Curran tabled a bill modifying the province’s Conflict of Interest Act so MacEwen -- and others like him -- could serve on the executive council.

Critics of the proposal said the ethics rules were in place for a reason as cabinet minister receive privileged information, including on the important seafood industry. Curran and others on the government’s side, meanwhile, said the law unfairly targeted the fishing sector by making it impossible for fishers to serve in cabinet.

Curran’s bill had passed first reading and was moving through the legislature over the last two weeks, sparking backlash from the Opposition Liberals and even an integrity commissioner from another Maritime province.

But Curran said he hasn’t completely given up on finding a way to allow licensed fishers like MacEwen into cabinet. That could include consultation with the ethics commissioner and the P.E.I. fisherman’s association, he said.

“I still believe that fishers should be afforded the ability to serve on executive council,” he added.

Robert Mitchell, leader of the Opposition Liberals, called Curran’s proposed amendments “terribly thought out” and said he was happy to see them abandoned.

Mitchell, who served in P.E.I.’s cabinet from 2015 to 2019 under the previous Liberal government, said ethics concerns can arise because cabinet ministers receive privileged information. As well, ministers shouldn’t have divided attention, he said.

“Their job is not a part-time job, it’s full-time work,” Mitchell said in an interview Friday, adding that cabinet ministers are essentially on call 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

P.E.I.’s lobster industry is considered a key part of the Island’s economy. Lobster was the province’s second-highest export in 2025, valued at $309 million. The Island’s fishing and aquaculture industry employs up to 8,000 people at peak production and adds $908 million to the provincial economy.

The federal government’s owner-operator regulations were adopted to ensure that Atlantic Canada’s fishing industry remains profitable for small, independent companies and that the benefits of licences stay in coastal communities. Licences can be worth hundreds of thousands of dollars to well over $1 million.

Curran, a third-generation politician, said he married into a lobster fishing family and wouldn’t want his four-year-old son Oliver to be in a position where he couldn’t serve in cabinet in the future. He told The Canadian Press earlier this week that “good governance” requires people from various sectors.

But, in a rare move, even New Brunswick’s integrity commissioner weighed in against Curran’s proposal. In a recent letter to P.E.I. party leaders, Charles Murray said the bill “would permit scenarios which would clearly be viewed as conflicts of interest otherwise.”

“Such redefinition of terms would significantly weaken P.E.I.’s Conflict of Interest Act.”

Murray said in an interview earlier this week that conflict of interest laws become meaningless if a government legalizes things that were previously barred by the rules.

MacEwen didn’t respond to interview requests, but said on social media he didn’t want to give up his licence.

“As most of you know, this is a family fleet and I would like to keep this gear in the family for as long as someone is willing to keep fishing,” he wrote.

By Eli Ridder in Fredericton

This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 1, 2026.