Prime Minister Trudeau is facing criticism — again — for staying for free at the lavish estates of his father’s longtime friends.This time it’s for staying in a $9,300 a night villa over the Christmas holidays, at a former slave plantation owned by the late Sir Harold Mitchell, the father-in-law of longtime family friend Peter Green. It’s the same estate the Trudeaus stayed at last spring, which cost taxpayers $162,000.The Green family has previously made donations to the Pierre Elliot Trudeau Foundation, which in 2021 established a scholarship fund in memory of Mary-Jean Mitchell Green who passed away from breast cancer..“This is 50 years of friendship,”Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.No cost breakdown for the most recent Caribbean getaway was provided by the Prime Minister’s Office, other than to note that Trudeau paid “the equivalent of a commercial airline ticket for his personal travel and that of his family.”That’s notwithstanding the costs of supplying the Trudeaus with a second government jet after his official Canadair plane broke down on the runway for the second time in as many months.Trudeau has previously run afoul of ethics laws by taking similar gratis excursions to the private island of Ismaili Muslim spiritual leader Aga Kahn.Speaking in Ottawa on Monday, Trudeau defended the trip as being above board. “My father was godfather to one of their kids, their father was godfather to one of my brothers. This is 50 years of friendship,” said Trudeau. “But, of course, we worked with the ethics commissioner to make sure all the rules were followed.”.“I think that this vacation shows just another example of a prime minister who doesn’t understand the realities of everyday Canadians,”NDP leader Jagmeet Singh .That prompted NDP leader Jagmeet Singh to accuse the Liberal government of being out of touch with ordinary Canadians facing high inflation and an affordability crisis.“I think that this vacation shows just another example of a prime minister who doesn’t understand the realities of everyday Canadians,” he said.Although Bloc Quebecois Leader Yves-Francois Blanchet agreed Trudeau has the right to go on vacation, he questioned if it was appropriate to “live in opulence” at a time when Canadians are struggling to put food on the table.“There’s a lack of consideration and respect for the average citizen in that behaviour and it does raise some questions about ethics,” he said.
