Canadian Taxpayers Federation questions B.C.’s Travel expenses

According to the Canadian Taxpayers Federation (CTF), the province is overspending on travel.

The organization is pointing to hotel, meal, and flight costs for a 2023 conference in Dubai, which far exceed typical rates.

The CTF says that this is not an isolated case.

“We have seen examples of bureaucrats racking up six-figure helicopter tabs travelling to and from Vancouver and Victoria,” CTF B.C. Director Carson Binda told The Leader Spirit.

“Ministers renting expensive SUV Limousines instead of taking Ubers when they do international junkets.”

The trip in question is the COP28, the UN climate change conference that was held at the Expo City Convention Centre in Dubai.

A 6-day trip that the CTF says cost upwards of $18,000.

“The Hilton Palm Jumeirah, a 5-star resort right on the water in Dubai, has rooms going for about 400$ a night. We were able to find business class Air Canada flights for about $4,000 round trip, less than half of what this bureaucrat spent,” Binda.

The CTF’s accusations come amid a cost-of-living crisis and a record-setting $11.6-billion deficit.

“We need bureaucrats and politicians in Victoria to rein in exactly this kind of travel spending,” Binda explained.

Former B.C. Premier Ujjal Dosanjh admits that these are fair public criticisms amid a deficit he calls “tragic”.

“There’s no question: governments must treat public funds as if they were their own,” he said.

He also adds that numbers may not tell the whole story.

“As legitimate as these criticisms are, they can only be determined based on what else was available under the circumstances.”

The province did not respond to our request for comment.

The Legislative Assembly of British Columbia’s manual, which was written in 2019, said, “business travel within or outside the province should reserve economical standard accommodations wherever possible.”

Whether or not they were remains to be seen.