The Canadian Taxpayers Federation (CTF) is telling Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to scrap lifetime expense accounts for former governors general after a recent poll found overwhelming opposition.
“This survey confirms what we already knew: taxpayers are not OK with seeing their money cover expensive entitlements for former governors general,” said CTF Quebec director Renaud Brossard in a press release on Thursday. “Frankly, what’s most surprising is how long it’s taking Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to do something about it.”
A Leger poll commissioned by the CTF suggested 78% of Canadians were opposed to post-retirement expense accounts for former governors general. This compared to 13% of respondents who supported the policy and 9% who didn’t know.
This policy received the most opposition in Quebec, with 88% of respondents saying it should be scrapped, compared to 75% in the rest of Canada. The poll also suggested that Canadians 55 years old and up were more likely to oppose this policy (87%) compared to 18-to-34 year olds (62%).
Documents obtained by the CTF through access to information requests show that former governors general can bill taxpayers for up to $206,000 per year in expenses for the rest of their lives, and even up to six months after their deaths.
Trudeau promised in 2018 to review the expense accounts of governors general. A report recommending changes was prepared for him in 2019, but he did not follow through with it.
“No saving is too small to be enacted when your government is dealing with a twelve-figure deficit,” said Brossard. “Scrapping those expensive taxpayer-funded expense accounts doesn’t just make sense; it’s also a popular measure.”
Conservative senator Claude Carignan proposed a private member’s bill in 2021 that would have seen former governor general Julie Payette lose her pension and benefits. The bill would also have seen governors general lose their benefits if they resign before completing their terms.
The move came after Payette resigned after a report alleged harassed and abused her staff as governor general. Under the current system, she receives an annual pension of almost $150,000 per year and an annual expense budget of up to $206,000.
The Leger poll was conducted with 1,537 Canadians 18 years old and older through online surveys between Feb. 11 to 13. The margin of error is +/- 2.5%, 19 times out of 20.
