Gov. Gen. Mary Simon used the Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF) for a nearly 3,000-kilometre flight so she could attend a six-minute ceremony last summer, federal records show.
The mileage was disclosed in an Inquiry of Ministry tabled in the House of Commons and reviewed by Blacklock’s Reporter.
According to the media outlet, flight crews ferried Simon back and forth between Ottawa and Halifax last August with expenses totalling $12,589, but which excluded the actual cost of aviation fuel and flight crews.
The Inquiry said Simon flew from Ottawa to Halifax on Aug. 23, 2022, for opening ceremonies of a Commonwealth Parliamentary Conference. Travelling along with her were an official photographer and five aides.
Following her appearance at the conference, the Governor General remained in the province and went on to stay at “a private residence in Nova Scotia,” wrote staff. Her host was not named.
Immediately after the ceremony, Simon returned to Nova Scotia.
“For the return flight to Nova Scotia a family member was a passenger on the plane,” the Inquiry said.
‘Act Responsibly’
Simon has stressed on several occasions the need to “act responsibly” to fight climate change.“The mental toll of this hurricane was overwhelming, and so, too, is the overall impact of climate change.”
“In Canada, we have legislated a net-zero target by 2050,” she said. “We must find ways to move forward—to act now, when it is most critical, to combat climate change at the source, treating both the symptoms and the disease.”
According to Blacklock’s Reporter, records show Simon used federal aircraft even when climate-friendlier travel options were available.
For example, the Governor General took an $8,000 junket by the RCAF from Ottawa to Peterborough, Ont., on Oct. 21, 2022 to make a speech and visit the Canadian Canoe Museum.
