Trudeau family vacationed with wealthy friends who donated to Pierre Elliott Trudeau Foundation
CBC
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and his family spent the holiday season at a luxurious estate in Jamaica belonging to a wealthy family which made a large donation two years ago to the Pierre Elliott Trudeau Foundation, Radio-Canada has learned.
Given the relationship between the Trudeaus and Peter Green's family — which dates back to the 1970s — the trip was cleared by the ethics commissioner before departure, according to the Prime Minister's Office (PMO). Green owns the Prospect estate with five "stunning villas" on the edge of the Caribbean Sea.
But neither the Office of the Conflict of Interest and Ethics Commissioner nor the PMO would state whether they were aware that the Green family is a donor to the Pierre Elliott Trudeau Foundation when they evaluated the trip.
In addition, the PMO did not want to say if Prime Minister Trudeau paid for his accommodation or other expenses out of pocket during this trip, which took place from Dec. 26, 2022 to January 4 of this year.
PMO spokesperson Ann-Clara Vaillancourt said that, following "regular practice," the prime minister reimbursed the equivalent value of a commercial flight for the personal trip for himself and his family. As per the rules, the Trudeaus were required to travel on a government plane for the trip.
According to several sources, concerns were expressed in the PMO and in Liberal circles about the optics of such a trip at a time when many Canadians are suffering financially from the high cost of goods and services.
"We wonder why he goes to places like that," a source told Radio-Canada.
The prime minister has been under fire for months from opposition critics who accuse him of contributing to inflation through his government's spending and of neglecting the cost of living crisis.
This trip marked the end of a year when the inflation rate in Canada spiked to 6.8 per cent.
A Liberal source told Radio-Canada Trudeau appears to ignore the real threat posed by Pierre Poilievre's Conservatives, who accuse the Liberals of being elitist, snobbish and out of touch.
"I can't explain why he provides them with ammunition and feeds these kinds of attacks," the source told Radio Canada.
Sources confirm that support for the trip was not unanimous within the PMO. The evaluation process took time internally, eventually leading to a formal approval following the go-ahead from the Office of the Ethics Commissioner.
The PMO announced that the Trudeaus would be going to Jamaica in a statement released days before the trip, without providing details about the exact destination or the name of the family hosting him.
Radio-Canada spoke to several confidential sources who were not authorized to speak publicly about this trip due to their current employment.
