Taxpayers are funding the tab for a federal department’s real estate portfolio to the extent of $186 million over the last decade.
This cost and more were revealed by the Canadian Taxpayers Federation, which highlighted that Global Affairs Canada owns more than 400 properties in over 70 countries.
One of the expenses is $12.5 million for vacant land in Senegal.
“Do we really need the government dropping tens of millions of dollars on official residences halfway around the world?” asked Franco Terrazzano, federal director of the Canadian Taxpayers Federation. “Better question: does Senegal not have vacant land available for less than eight figures?”
Consul General in New York and former chair of Global Public Affairs, Tom Clark, was previously involved in a spending controversy after the government purchased a $9 million condo in the ultra-luxury area of Billionaires’ Row.
“With the government more than $1 trillion in debt, taxpayers need to know why the government is spending so much of our money overseas,” said Terrazzano.
The federal debt officially doubled during Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s tenure to $1.232 trillion on Aug. 30. He added more to the debt during his time in office than every other prime minister before him combined.
Some of the department’s costs include $58 million on 23 properties since 2015. Global Affairs Canada owns 65 properties in London, U.K., totalling a purchase cost of $208 million.
The Canadian Taxpayers Federation highlighted that Global Affairs Canada spent $41 million on three properties in Kabul, Afghanistan. The properties have since allegedly been abandoned to the Taliban.
Terrazzano told True North that Global Affairs Canada is a particularly wasteful department. It is spending an average of $51,000 on alcohol monthly. He added that it also had one of the most wasteful slush funds, which was subsequently shut down after the federation highlighted it.
“When the Trudeau government wastes our money overseas, it can be especially frustrating for struggling taxpayers back home. The big problem is that we continue to see the government waste our Canadian tax dollars on lavish spending around the world,” said Terrazzano.
The Canadian Taxpayers Federation previously showcased that the CBC’s real estate portfolio consisted of over $444 million across 12 properties.
The Liberals spent almost $15.5 billion on foreign aid in 2022-23. The department with the most spending was Global Affairs Canada, at nearly $7 billion. Following it was the Department of Finance, at over $6.3 billion and Immigration, Refugees, and Citizenship Canada at just over $1.7 billion.
Conservative MP Arpan Khanna revealed some of the most “outrageous” spending abroad from the Liberals, warning that Trudeau needed to stop funding foreign dictators and “woke global elites.”
Some of the highlighted points included $62 million to protect biodiversity in regions worldwide, including “gender-responsive biodiversity action,” $29.4 million to support small-scale financial institutions in developing countries, $10 million for young entrepreneurs in Egypt’s agribusiness sector, and millions to fund inclusive governance systems.
“Are you kidding me? The guy that has divided Canadians from coast to coast. He pits region against the other region. He attacks people based on their race, their gender, their wealth, their vaccination status,” said Khanna. “He’s divided Canadians right across our country, and he’s funding inclusive governance-building systems? Give me a break.”
True North reached out to Global Affairs Canada but received no reply.