Government Operations committee  Thank you for the question. If I understand the question correctly, it's whether the costs for domestic travel within Canada are comparable to international costs. I would say that costs are dictated by the nature of the specific type of visit. Within Canada, the Governor Gene

Government Operations committee  There are different players. There are different levels of security. My colleagues could speak to that. There are partners we work with when we're participating in these different activities. There are not as many ceremonial elements. When the Governor General's conducting a sta

Government Operations committee  Perhaps I can start by saying that diplomatic travel is a vital component of a country's international engagement strategy. The Governor General travels only at the request of the government, but the decisions with regard to these visits must always reflect the high standards of

Government Operations committee  Thank you for the question. The costs of these visits are actually already released, as Mr. Wheeler has described, through public accounts and through the office of protocol, which is responsible for the procurement and the accountability of the contracts. That includes travel a

Government Operations committee  Sir, I would refer this to my colleagues from Global Affairs and the Royal Canadian Air Force. They are the contracting authorities and are responsible for these costs. I will share the floor with my colleagues, sir.

Government Operations committee  Absolutely.

Government Operations committee  Mr. Johns, as I mentioned to Mrs. Block, we will be going back to that report from 2004 to look at those recommendations. What I wanted to talk about regarding this kind of ongoing review of all that we do, is that, what we're trying to do, going forward, is to ensure that we do

Government Operations committee  Absolutely. Let me be clear. As I've said before, the costs of the catering were unacceptable. The comments made during the previous experience in September were based on my experience of being involved with official international visits over many years. I was giving an example

Government Operations committee  Perhaps I can start by reiterating that the Governor General and her office are not involved in any way in the procurement or selection of the catering, but we have participated in a working group that has been set up by my colleague Mr. Wheeler and my colleague General Kenny. As

Government Operations committee  As Mr. Wheeler mentioned, I would be pleased to come back to the committee once I've had a chance to study more clearly the recommendations, but I can say that one thing our office has done since 2004 is produce and publish on our website an annual report that gives an overview o

Government Operations committee  Thank you, Mr. Chair and members of the committee. As part of my duties as the Deputy Secretary for the Policy, Program and Protocol Branch at the Office of the Secretary to the Governor General, or the OSGG as we are known, I am responsible for the planning and execution of the

Government Operations committee  Again, to add a personal experience, I actually contracted COVID on this visit. I had to remain behind and quarantine in Qatar. So in terms of the Treasury Board.... This came to me as a public servant. You talk about per diems for members of Parliament. This to me gives an overa

Government Operations committee  It was a very unique experience.

Government Operations committee  Yes. The entire motorcade left and I stayed behind for 11 days. It did help me appreciate what some of the challenges are.

Government Operations committee  In this instance, I can confirm that she took the Challenger to fly to London.