Close X
Wednesday, November 27, 2024
ADVT 
National

PM stayed in $6k London suite for royal funeral

Darpan News Desk The Canadian Press, 23 Mar, 2023 05:07 PM
  • PM stayed in $6k London suite for royal funeral

OTTAWA - The Prime Minister's Office says Justin Trudeau and his wife, Sophie Grégoire Trudeau, stayed in a $6,000 per night hotel suite while attending the funeral for Queen Elizabeth II.

The stay at the Corinthia London hotel became the subject of public debate last fall when media honed in on the details of the $400,000 trip, after obtaining documents through access-to-information requests.

But Trudeau's office and Global Affairs Canada did not respond to questions last month about who stayed in the expensive river suite, which features a butler service.

Opposition MPs on the government operations committee asked for a copy of all receipts and invoices associated with the trip last month.

The room was booked on Sept. 9, one day after the Queen's death, for Sept. 15 to 20.

In a statement, the Prime Minister's Office says hotel prices surged significantly ahead of the funeral, and many London hotels were sold out as 500 heads of state and their delegations descended on the city.

The hotel's website currently lists the suite at 5,154 British pounds per night, higher than the 4,800 pounds the government was charged in September.

A night in the river suite next month would come out to more than $8,000 at the current exchange rate.

The Prime Minister's Office did not immediately respond to questions about the higher prices and why the government chose this particular hotel.

Documents released through access-to-information requests note that the booking was for a three-bed suite. The hotel's website says it has one king-sized bed but there are "connecting rooms available on request."

In November, Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre peppered Trudeau with questions in the House of Commons about who stayed in the suite, but he didn't answer.

"The death of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II was a significant event for Canadians. Canada was represented by former prime ministers and governors general to pay their respects to the monarch who oversaw almost half of Canada’s time as an independent country," said a press secretary for Trudeau in a written statement Thursday.

MORE National ARTICLES

B.C. invests $200 million in food security

B.C. invests $200 million in food security
Eby says the "historic" investment in B.C.'s food security comes as a direct response to events that occurred in the past few years, when flooding, wildfires and COVID supply-chain bottlenecks "essentially cut off" crucial supply lines in the province.

B.C. invests $200 million in food security

'Impossible to deny' hate increase in B.C.: report

'Impossible to deny' hate increase in B.C.: report
Kasari Govender released a nearly 500-page report Tuesday detailing the results of her office's public inquiry into hate incidents during the pandemic. The report says hate incidents have increased dramatically during the pandemic, disproportionately impacting marginalized communities, along with increases in gender-based violence, and online hate.

'Impossible to deny' hate increase in B.C.: report

B.C. overdose figure tops 200 again: coroner

B.C. overdose figure tops 200 again: coroner
A statement from the coroner's office says the death rate in January was 47 people per 100,000, more than double the 20.5 death rate that prompted B.C.'s medical health officer to declare the emergency almost seven years ago.

B.C. overdose figure tops 200 again: coroner

Immigration minister meeting counterpart in D.C.

Immigration minister meeting counterpart in D.C.
Sean Fraser's office said the minister would be meeting with U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas before he holds a news conference at the Canadian Embassy in Washington, D.C.

Immigration minister meeting counterpart in D.C.

Surrey reconsiders 17.5 per cent tax increase

Surrey reconsiders 17.5 per cent tax increase
Nearly 10 per cent of the original 17.5 per cent tax hike was related to the cost of Mayor Brenda Locke's pledge to keep the Surrey RCMP detachment and scrap a transition to a municipal police force.

Surrey reconsiders 17.5 per cent tax increase

Trudeau asks for new foreign interference probes

Trudeau asks for new foreign interference probes
The National Security and Intelligence Review Agency will look at the work Canada's intelligence agencies have done on foreign interference. Trudeau will also appoint a "special rapporteur" to independently review their work to ensure there are no gaps.

Trudeau asks for new foreign interference probes