More stories are emerging of diva-like actions by the Queen’s representative in Canada, Gov.-Gen. Julie Payette..Payette is using a government Challenger, which takes a couple hours of pre-takeoff prep time and almost $5,000 an hour, for pick-ups and drop-offs at Mirabel en route to her Laurentian Mountain cottage, reported CTV’s Don Martin..To reach the terminal via her chauffeur-driven car would take less than 90 minutes..Flight data for 2019 shows Payette made seven pit stops in Mirabel aboard the jet and this has continued in 2020 as she work at her cottage in pandemic isolation, reported Martin..Payette even took on a flight on May 6 from Brockville, located a 90-minute drive south of Ottawa, directly to Mirabel before the plane returned to Ottawa..CBC reported Monday Payette has been also causing headaches for the RCMP security details by slipping away on foreign trips..Payette’s secrecy and resistance to working with the RCMP routinely sends her protective detail scrambling to fulfil last-minute requests and drives up spending on overtime, hotel and plane tickets, multiple sources told CBC News. . The force has also had to apologize for her behaviour to foreign security abroad because she treated them so poorly, said sources. .CBC reported RCMP confirmed there was more than a $1 million increase in spending to protect the Governor General in 2019-20 compared the previous fiscal year, when it cost $6.3 million. .Her tendency to try and elude her protecters forced the Mounties to monitor Payette using GPS technology when she demands space, said an RCMP source to the CBC..CBC reported a litany of problems including:.RCMP paying double or triple the price for flights abroad because Payette hadn’t decided if she was going on personal or work trips until the last minute. Some international flights have cost up to $12,000. Hotel rooms with a $400 price tag sitting empty near the Citadelle — her second official residence in Quebec City — because Payette suddenly decided she wanted to go to her cottage north of Montreal, but it was too late to cancel the original booking.The cost of an additional officer — ranging from an estimated $4,000 to $15,000 per week — on international trips to guard Payette’s door because of her repeated attempts to slip away from her protective detail. .Payette’s press secretary said cost-saving measures “are at the heart of all decisions made by our office.”.“The last two years have been particularly busy when it comes to representing Canada both at home and abroad, especially in regards to various commemorations linked to the First and Second World Wars,” said Ashlee Smith in a statement. .Earlier is was reported Pyette had spent $141,000 to plan for a private staircase that was never built..But Pyette’s spokeswoman says Canadians don’t have to right to ask about her living arrangements.. Defying crackdown, hundreds march against lockdowns in Calgary .It was part of hundreds of thousands of dollars Pyette demanded in privacy upgrades before she would move into Rideau Hall – but she still hasn’t moved into her official residence almost three years into her five-year mandate. .More than $117,500 was also spent on a gate and series of doors to keep people away from Payette’s office, according to the National Capital Commission (NCC), which manages the official vice-regal residence..While a large chunk of the grounds of Rideau Hall are open to the public, Payette “wanted to come and go without anyone seeing her,” one source with knowledge of the project told the CBC..Multiple sources told CBC, Payette doesn’t like maintenance workers in her line of sight and even RCMP protection officers aren’t allowed to stand directly outside her office door and must hide in a room down the hallway..Just last month there were claims the Queen’s representative in Canada had seen a mass exodus of staff while reducing others to tears after dressing-downs..“Four members of Payette’s communications team have departed during the pandemic period alone. A fifth person is leaving this week and another two have taken leaves of absence. It’s just the latest wave of staff to quietly transfer out of the small office in response to mistreatment during Payette’s mandate”, multiple sources told the CBC..“This has gone from being one of the most collegial and enjoyable work environments for many of the staff to being a house of horrors – it’s bullying and harassment at its worst,” one source told CBC..Multiple sources told CBC Payette routinely complained of being tired, underfed and overworked..But Rideau Hall said Payette and “the management of the Office of the Secretary to the Governor General ‘strongly believe’ in the importance of a healthy workplace.”.“We deeply regret this reporting, which is in stark contrast to the reality of working at the OSGG, and obscures the important work done by our dedicated staff in honouring, representing, and showcasing Canadians,” said Ashlee Smith, press secretary to the Governor General, in a statement to CBC..Payette, a former astronaut, was appointed Governor General on the advice of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau in October 2017. Her term runs until 2022..At the beginning of her mandate, CBC reported, Payette put staff on the spot by quizzing them about outer space — asking them to name all the planets in the solar system, for example, or to state the distance between the sun and the moon..Dave Naylor is the News Editor of the Western Standard.dnaylor@westernstandardonline.com.Twitter.com/nobby7694
More stories are emerging of diva-like actions by the Queen’s representative in Canada, Gov.-Gen. Julie Payette..Payette is using a government Challenger, which takes a couple hours of pre-takeoff prep time and almost $5,000 an hour, for pick-ups and drop-offs at Mirabel en route to her Laurentian Mountain cottage, reported CTV’s Don Martin..To reach the terminal via her chauffeur-driven car would take less than 90 minutes..Flight data for 2019 shows Payette made seven pit stops in Mirabel aboard the jet and this has continued in 2020 as she work at her cottage in pandemic isolation, reported Martin..Payette even took on a flight on May 6 from Brockville, located a 90-minute drive south of Ottawa, directly to Mirabel before the plane returned to Ottawa..CBC reported Monday Payette has been also causing headaches for the RCMP security details by slipping away on foreign trips..Payette’s secrecy and resistance to working with the RCMP routinely sends her protective detail scrambling to fulfil last-minute requests and drives up spending on overtime, hotel and plane tickets, multiple sources told CBC News. . The force has also had to apologize for her behaviour to foreign security abroad because she treated them so poorly, said sources. .CBC reported RCMP confirmed there was more than a $1 million increase in spending to protect the Governor General in 2019-20 compared the previous fiscal year, when it cost $6.3 million. .Her tendency to try and elude her protecters forced the Mounties to monitor Payette using GPS technology when she demands space, said an RCMP source to the CBC..CBC reported a litany of problems including:.RCMP paying double or triple the price for flights abroad because Payette hadn’t decided if she was going on personal or work trips until the last minute. Some international flights have cost up to $12,000. Hotel rooms with a $400 price tag sitting empty near the Citadelle — her second official residence in Quebec City — because Payette suddenly decided she wanted to go to her cottage north of Montreal, but it was too late to cancel the original booking.The cost of an additional officer — ranging from an estimated $4,000 to $15,000 per week — on international trips to guard Payette’s door because of her repeated attempts to slip away from her protective detail. .Payette’s press secretary said cost-saving measures “are at the heart of all decisions made by our office.”.“The last two years have been particularly busy when it comes to representing Canada both at home and abroad, especially in regards to various commemorations linked to the First and Second World Wars,” said Ashlee Smith in a statement. .Earlier is was reported Pyette had spent $141,000 to plan for a private staircase that was never built..But Pyette’s spokeswoman says Canadians don’t have to right to ask about her living arrangements.. Defying crackdown, hundreds march against lockdowns in Calgary .It was part of hundreds of thousands of dollars Pyette demanded in privacy upgrades before she would move into Rideau Hall – but she still hasn’t moved into her official residence almost three years into her five-year mandate. .More than $117,500 was also spent on a gate and series of doors to keep people away from Payette’s office, according to the National Capital Commission (NCC), which manages the official vice-regal residence..While a large chunk of the grounds of Rideau Hall are open to the public, Payette “wanted to come and go without anyone seeing her,” one source with knowledge of the project told the CBC..Multiple sources told CBC, Payette doesn’t like maintenance workers in her line of sight and even RCMP protection officers aren’t allowed to stand directly outside her office door and must hide in a room down the hallway..Just last month there were claims the Queen’s representative in Canada had seen a mass exodus of staff while reducing others to tears after dressing-downs..“Four members of Payette’s communications team have departed during the pandemic period alone. A fifth person is leaving this week and another two have taken leaves of absence. It’s just the latest wave of staff to quietly transfer out of the small office in response to mistreatment during Payette’s mandate”, multiple sources told the CBC..“This has gone from being one of the most collegial and enjoyable work environments for many of the staff to being a house of horrors – it’s bullying and harassment at its worst,” one source told CBC..Multiple sources told CBC Payette routinely complained of being tired, underfed and overworked..But Rideau Hall said Payette and “the management of the Office of the Secretary to the Governor General ‘strongly believe’ in the importance of a healthy workplace.”.“We deeply regret this reporting, which is in stark contrast to the reality of working at the OSGG, and obscures the important work done by our dedicated staff in honouring, representing, and showcasing Canadians,” said Ashlee Smith, press secretary to the Governor General, in a statement to CBC..Payette, a former astronaut, was appointed Governor General on the advice of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau in October 2017. Her term runs until 2022..At the beginning of her mandate, CBC reported, Payette put staff on the spot by quizzing them about outer space — asking them to name all the planets in the solar system, for example, or to state the distance between the sun and the moon..Dave Naylor is the News Editor of the Western Standard.dnaylor@westernstandardonline.com.Twitter.com/nobby7694
