Sean Kilpatrick Archives The Canadian Press Conservative MP and ethics critic Michael Barrett in December 2022
The Canadian Press in Ottawa
7:05 p.m.
- Canada
Federal Conservatives call on Conflict of Interest and Ethics Commissioner to investigate Justin Trudeau's vacation with friends in Jamaica and how the Prime Minister's Office handled the fact that it was hosted for free.
MP Michael Barrett, Conservative ethics critic, wrote to Commissioner Konrad von Finckenstein on Tuesday whether he knew Mr. Trudeau had stayed at a luxury estate owned by a family friend.< /p>
The Canadian Press has not independently verified a report in the National Post that Mr. Trudeau vacationed in a luxury area of Jamaica where villas rented for thousands of dollars a night during the holiday season.
Mr. Barrett calls this stay a gift with commercial value.
Before the vacation, the Prime Minister's office made a point of emphasizing that Mr. Trudeau would cover the costs of this 10-day trip to Jamaica.
But just before the prime minister returned, his office clarified that he had reimbursed the equivalent of plane tickets on a commercial flight, but that the Trudeaus were staying for free with family friends. The cabinet specified that before leaving, the Prime Minister had consulted the Ethics Commissioner on the details of this trip.
A spokeswoman for Mr. von Finckenstein would not say last week what details the prime minister's office had provided to his office.
He however recalled that the Conflict of Interest Act allowed a public office holder to accept “a gift or other advantage” from a relative or friend without having to declare it publicly.