A former B.C. NDP ministerial adviser and one-time provincial election candidate is now registered to lobby the B.C. government.

Scott Andrews, a principal with Canadian public affairs and public relations firm Earnscliffe, previously worked as a media relations officer and as an adviser for several B.C. ministries between 2017 and 2023, according to his lobbying registration.

He is now registered to lobby the B.C. government on behalf of Canadian quantum computing company, Photonic Inc., according to the provincial lobbyist registry.

Photonic says its work has the potential to “address some of the world’s most pressing challenges in materials science, drug discovery, climate change and security.”

According to an April media release, InBC Investment Corp, a B.C. Crown corporation and strategic investment fund, has invested in Coquitlam-based Photonic. The amount of money is not included in the release. InBC did not respond to a request for more information late Friday.

A May news release from Photonic states the company had just received $275 million in investment from InBC, the Business Development Bank of Canada, Export Development Canada and others. The company’s post-money valuation was $2.7 billion, according to the release, making it one of Canada’s most valuable startups.

Andrews' Aug. 19 lobbyist registration shows Photonic received $125,000 in government funding from the National Research Council between September 2023 and October 2025.

The registration states Andrews is seeking to lobby the minister of state for AI and the Ministry of Jobs and Economic Growth.

It also states Andrews has made a political contribution or contributions within the last two years.

The IJF’s political donations database shows a person named Scott James Andrews has donated about $4,000 total to the B.C. NDP since the beginning of 2024.

Lobbyists are required to report if they have made political contributions to people or parties who are the target of their lobbying efforts.

Former B.C. public office holders, including ministerial staff, are banned from lobbying for a two-year period after leaving their job in politics, according to the Lobbyists Transparency Act. Andrews’ lobbyist registration shows he last held a ministerial adviser position in April 2023.

Previously, Andrews ran unsuccessfully as the NDP candidate for Vancouver Quadra in the 2015 federal election and as the B.C. NDP candidate for Cariboo-Chilcotin in the 2020 provincial election.

The IJF reached out to Andrews for comment but did not hear back.

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