Canadian taxpayers footed a $1.03 million bill for two lavish government conferences held in 2024, with expenses including $94,000 dinners, $915 flower arrangements, and $1,340 for musical spoons purchased from Amazon.
Francophonie Conference Costs $631,569
The 49th annual Assemblée Parlementaire de la Francophonie, held in Montreal from July 5-8, 2024, cost taxpayers $631,569 for the three-day event. The expenses included $303,585.57 in hospitality charges, $155,565.23 for hotel accommodations for 27 staff and 86 participants, and $87,339.45 for transportation.
Food costs proved particularly extravagant, with $198,273.81 spent on lunch and breaks for 475 delegates at the Fairmont Queen Elizabeth - approximately $417 per person. An additional $79,300 was allocated for a cultural dinner catered by Montreal's Las Olas Traiteur, while $11,305.23 covered performances including Mi'kmaq artist Megan Leinen and acrobatic troupe Le Monastère.
Questionable Expenses Draw Criticism
The disclosure revealed several eyebrow-raising purchases, including $1,339.67 for musical spoons bought through Amazon. Franco Terrazzano, federal director of the Canadian Taxpayers Association, expressed outrage at the spending.
"You know the government is spending way too much money when it could have taken everyone out for lunch at the Keg, ordered the most expensive meal on the menu and still saved taxpayers money," Terrazzano said. "Why is the government spending a thousand dollars on musical spoons for a dinner show when it could have just grabbed a couple spoons off the tables?"
NATO Conference Adds $405,418 in Costs
Later in 2024, the government spent $405,418 to host the 70th annual session of the NATO Parliamentary Assembly in Montreal from November 22-25. This event featured $134,000 in dinner costs, including $94,937.16 for a single dinner reception facilitated by Éloize Studios/Cirque Éloize.
Additional expenses included $62,987.05 for accommodations, $46,220.89 for transportation, and $21,047.60 in per diems. The conference also spent $15,283.86 on a four-day, nine-person site visit in October and nearly $13,000 on delegate gift bags containing lanyards, lapel pins, pens, and scarves.
These lavish conferences occurred as the federal civil service cost taxpayers $71.4 billion in the 2024/25 fiscal year - a significant increase from $39.6 billion a decade earlier, highlighting growing concerns about government spending priorities.
