Former Governor General Adrienne Clarkson still charges more than $ 100,000 per year in expenses

OTTAWA – Former Governor General Adrienne Clarkson still charges Canadian taxpayers more than $ 100,000 per year in office expenses. Since leaving Rideau Hall in 2005, she has claimed more than $ 1.1 million.

Expenditures, paid as part of an unusual program allowing former governors general to bill their office expenses for the rest of their lives, are also used by former governors general. However, only Clarkson regularly charges more than $ 100,000 a year, which means that its expenses appear in a separate item in the federal government's public accounts.

Expenditures add up to the $ 1.6 million that Clarkson has received to date as a government pension. It also does not include the $ 3 million start-up grant (up to $ 7 million over 10 years to match private sector donations) that went to create the Clarkson Charity Institute. the Institute for Canadian Citizenship. The pension and start-up premium are the norm for outgoing governors general.

The Governors General Expenditure Program was created in 1979 and appears to be unique among federal government positions. There is little public transparency in the way money is spent; Rideau Hall says that it takes receipts and invoices, but it would not disclose exactly what is spent or what other governors general are spending. Canada's Access to Information Act does not cover Rideau Hall.

In general, expenses can range from "administrative support, office space and furniture to professional services, travel and accommodation," according to a Rideau Hall spokesperson.

The only public disclosure of expenditures is in the public accounts, which are tabled each year in Parliament. Since 1995 – since the public accounts are online – Roméo LeBlanc is the only Governor General, apart from Clarkson, to have spent more than $ 100,000 in one year, as he had done in 2008 and 2009.

From 1999 to 2005, Governor General Clarkson spent more than $ 100,000 in nine of her 12 closed years. The only years she did not know, from 2012 to 2014, immediately followed an article in the Toronto Star in 2011 that reported spending. It is unclear whether Clarkson stopped spending during this period or just fell below the $ 100,000 threshold.

Clarkson's highest year of spending was recorded in 2007-08, when it claimed $ 169,098. In her last deposit, filed October 19, she claimed $ 114,803. Not counting the gap between 2012 and 2014, Clarkson has charged taxpayers a total of $ 1,119,362 in spending since leaving Rideau Hall.

The Clarkson office refused to answer questions about the money spent or how Clarkson determines the expenses that it is appropriate to claim. Her executive badistant described the claims as a "private matter" between the office and Rideau Hall. The badistant stated that Clarkson was currently on a one-week trip to Europe.

In 2011, Michael Henry, then Clarkson's badistant, justified his expenses to the Star by stating that Clarkson had received up to 200 letters and 20 to 30 requests to speak monthly.

"As the most active and engaged Governor General of Canada, she has created a profile, which means that many useful calls for her personal involvement are important. She takes this seriously and needs time and research to evaluate their value for active participation "time.

Clarkson is on the list of Speakers' Spotlight, suggesting that she will likely receive a referral fee for her events.

Natalie Babin Dufresne, director of communications at the Office of the Secretary to the Governor General, said in a statement that all governors general since 1979 had access to federal government funding for "administrative support."

"Once the governors general have completed their term, we are still waiting for them to remain Canadian personalities," she said. "This expectation of a continuous public life means that they are regularly solicited to support various causes, participate in important events and conduct official activities. Administrative support is needed to coordinate public commitments and the ongoing work expected of Canadians. "

The National Post asked how much each Governor General had claimed and if it was possible to find information publicly, but Rideau Hall refused to say so.

"All the governors general have been using this program since 1979," said Babin Dufresne. "However, the respective amounts of spending will vary according to the level of commitment of each former Governor General in public life."

If the annual expenses of a former governor general do not exceed $ 100,000, they are grouped under a general category of "temporary help services" in the public accounts of the Office of the Secretary to the Governor General. Last year, aside from Clarkson's expenditures, the public accounts indicate that a total of $ 227,624 was paid to five other recipients in this category, which may include expenditures unrelated to the former Governor General. .

Clarkson has remained active with various causes and organizations since her departure, which are listed on her website. "It is universally recognized that Ms. Clarkson transformed the office during her six years at Rideau Hall and left an indelible mark on Canada's history," says her website.

His expenses were also scrutinized during his tenure, in particular during a 19-day official trip to Russia, Iceland and Finland, which was to cost $ 1 million but to $ 3 million, which has spurred a committee of the House of Commons office spending. Clarkson defended the expenses by stating that the government had asked him to make state visits.

With records of Marie-Danielle Smith.

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