A Liberal Party disclosure report on a top-tier party donor event in Ottawa that featured the Prime Minister shows that nearly seven per cent of attendees were registered to lobby PMO.

The party posted its “open fundraising event report” that details the names of 628 attendees from the Laurier Club annual summer reception held at the Canadian War Museum – a “donor appreciation” event featuring Justin Trudeau for the party’s top level donors. Supporters who shell out at least $1,500 to the party every year (the maximum donation allowed by Elections Canada is $1,550 for an individual in 2017) fall into the ‘Laurier Club’ donor tranche.

Of the 628 names in attendance, 43 are currently registered to lobby the Prime Minister’s Office.

This event in particular had attracted some of the biggest Liberal names in lobbying around, including Andrew Balfour, Susan Smith, Alan Young and Isabel Metcalfe – along with numerous cabinet ministers and party insiders.

A Liberal Party spokesperson said that the party is following all the rules and is opening up its fundraising practices more than other parties.

“Together with commitments to post event details in advance and host them in publicly accessible spaces, these Liberal steps ensure unprecedented transparency and accountability,” said a statement from Braeden Caley.

The Liberals have been under the microscope after months of negative media and opposition cash-for-access criticisms emerged arguing that wealthy party donors are benefitting through special access to the Prime Minister and his cabinet by attending top-dollar fundraising events – which were often held in private.

The party hit the pause button on fundraising events in early 2017, as it drafted new policies for fundraising transparency amid the cash-for-access criticisms – and now posts these event reports on its website. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau resumed attending political fundraisers at the beginning of May.

It’s since invited media to attend the events – but the June 19 Laurier Club party also attracted some negative attention once reporters were told that they couldn’t interview the guests.

File this under things I don’t understand: LPC kicks media out of their open fundraiser & tries to prevent journalists from talking to folks — Althia Raj (@althiaraj) June 19, 2017

We were allowed to watch PMJT speech from cordoned off area, then led out after. In the room about 45 minutes. https://t.co/0NEOoa5c8L — Glen McGregor (@glen_mcgregor) June 20, 2017

Not able to talk to Laurier Club guests unless they came over to media paddock. So, yes, more open than before but still highly controlled. https://t.co/0NEOoa5c8L — Glen McGregor (@glen_mcgregor) June 20, 2017

Tensions were also high over the event within the lobbying community. In the lead up to the Laurier Club garden party, some lobbyists were concerned they might be barred from entry, after lobbyists had been prevented from attending an event in Montreal earlier in the year.

Chatter in the lobbying community about that prospect had a few swearing that they would tear up their memberships to the high-rolling donor club if they couldn’t attend – the garden party with the Prime Minister is the main perk. One top donor, at the time, expressed frustrations that their entire profession has been dragged through the mud from all of the cash-for-access coverage.

The Liberals doused the notion anyone would be barred from entry at the time. Caley said that was just speculation and rumours. He explained that the two events were different: the Montreal event had a ticketed price for the donation amount. The other was an “annual appreciation event for our growing base of existing Liberal donors.”

The party also sent out a special message to lobbyist attendees just before the event:

“Please also note that any registered lobbyists attending this event must agree to do so in a personal capacity only, without lobbying Mr. Trudeau or any other office holders in attendance, and to comply with their responsibilities under the Lobbying Act at all times,” it said.

Opposition parties have meanwhile kept up the heat on the Liberals’ new policy on open fundraising events, along with the government’s new political fundraising legislation that will require parties to publicly post details about donor events – and the Liberals’ list of fundraiser events.

A Conservative fundraising email sent out late Thursday warned its supporters that while the Tories outpaced the Liberals in their first quarter donations, the Liberals have “gone back to doing what they do best – raising money by holding their unethical cash-for-access events.”

“They are closing the fundraising gap as a result!”

The Liberals have meanwhile insisted that the Conservatives aren’t being transparent with their own fundraising events.

Click here for the full list of attendees at the Laurier Club event: