Your tax dollars at work

Welcome back, dear taxpayers. Another week, another trove of publicly disclosed expense reports from the federal government’s own proactive-disclosure portals. Let’s see where your money went. London, England — the city that never stops attracting Canadian officials — was practically a satellite Ottawa this past March. Three members of the Secretariat of the National Security and Intelligence Committee of Parliamentarians flew over during the same week for “Key Stakeholder Engagement”: Executive Director Lisa-Marie Inman at $13,534, Acting Director of Operations Arryn Ketter at $11,085, and committee member Alex Ruff at $10,211. That’s nearly $35,000 for a single week of stakeholder-engaging in the same city. One hopes the stakeholders felt thoroughly engaged. And they weren’t alone — the very next week, Global Affairs sent Director of Communications James Fitz-Morris to Ankara and London at $14,675, alongside Senior Special Assistant Youssef Abdul Ameir on an identical itinerary for $13,484. The purpose listed for Mr. Abdul Ameir’s trip includes the charmingly candid typo “bilateral visists,” which, at roughly $2,700 per visist-day, feels about right. Meanwhile, the Middle East drew its own traffic. Privy Council Office Director Michael Maka accompanied the prime minister to government events in Doha for $9,746 — notably with $0 in lodging but $1,466 in meals over a week, which works out to about $209 a day in eating. And David Angell, foreign and defence policy advisor to the prime minister, rang in the new year with a trip to Kyiv and Paris at $9,726, spending only $518 on lodging across five nights. Efficiency, or very generous hosts? On the hospitality ledger, the Canada Revenue Agency’s director of Board Management Secretariat, Elisabeth Mertens, hosted 35 guests at the Westin Ottawa for a “Joint Strategic Development Session” at $2,612 — about $75 a head. Over at the National Gallery, Director Jean-François Bélisle threw a private reception for an exhibition opening, catered by One Plate, for $2,847. Fifty-four guests at $53 each is restrained by gallery-opening standards, though one suspects the art on the walls cost somewhat more. And Atomic Energy of Canada’s Amy Gottschling took 35 people to Café Deluxe in Ottawa for a stakeholder meeting at $3,306 — $94 a head. For a café calling itself “Deluxe,” at least the name delivered on its promise. Across the Atlantic in a different direction, the National Research Council’s vice president of engineering, Jean François Houle, flew to Brussels for an EU Technology Council meeting on advanced materials. Three days, $11,132 — of which $9,914 was airfare alone. The hotel came in at a modest $804, suggesting Mr. Houle either found a bargain or spent most of his time at 35,000 feet. And our ambassador to Brazil, Emmanuel Kamarianakis, hosted 80 guests at a New Year gathering with ambassadors and senior Brazilian officials for $2,724. At $34 a head in Brasilia, that qualifies as diplomatic restraint — roughly the price of a couple of caipirinhas and a generous plate of feijoada per guest. Finally, let us note the most disciplined diner disclosed this cycle: Parliamentary Secretary Claude Guay flew to Riyadh to represent the minister at the Future Minerals Forum. The five-day trip cost $9,872, but his meals came in at just $239 — under $48 a day in one of the Gulf’s priciest cities. Every grain of Saudi rice, duly accounted for. See you next week. This article examines publicly disclosed expense reports from the Canadian federal government. It highlights spending on international travel, stakeholder engagement, and hospitality. Several officials travelled to London, England, for “Key Stakeholder Engagement,” costing taxpayers nearly $35,000 in one week. Other trips included visits to Ankara, Doha, Kyiv, and Paris. The article also scrutinizes spending on meals and receptions, noting both instances of perceived extravagance and surprising frugality. It concludes with a wry observation about the meticulous accounting of expenses, particularly in high-cost locations, suggesting a critical perspective on government spending habits. Are these expenses justified for 'stakeholder engagement' and international relations, or are they excessive uses of taxpayer money? How do these expenses compare to similar expenditures in other countries, and what benchmarks should be used to evaluate their reasonableness? What impact could increased transparency and scrutiny of government expenses have on public trust and political accountability? Comments (0)