Sen. Peter Boehm, a Liberal appointee, expressed disappointment and frustration over an $87,100 budget cut to a Senate committee trip to Africa, which he deemed "difficult to bear." Blacklock's Reporter says the initial request of $265,400 was intended to fund a visit to Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, for six senators and four staff, but the budget committee reduced the delegation to four senators without staff and slashed expenses by a third to $178,300.“I am very disappointed,” Boehm told the Senate committee on internal economy. The spending cut was unfair, he said. “I do not see this as a compromise.”“I don’t think it’s particularly fair,” said Boehm, former Canadian ambassador to Germany. “I think it’s short-sighted to send one third of the membership of a committee abroad. To me that’s not a committee visit.”Boehm, chair of the Senate foreign affairs committee, argued that the mission was essential to Canada's interests and commitment to Africa. However, his concerns about the budget cut were met with skepticism by Sen. Donald Plett, Opposition Leader in the Senate, who urged frugality in light of the country's deficits.“Let’s keep in mind that we don’t have any money,” Plett told the committee on internal economy.“We’re running deficits in this country."The debate highlights the longstanding issue of parliamentary junkets and their value to Canadians. Boehm himself questioned the purpose and results of such trips, citing unclear benefits and unused reports. Recent trips by other parliamentary associations, such as a $98,648 journey to Manila and a $45,700 visit to Brussels, have also raised eyebrows.Plett emphasized the importance of streamlining expenses, noting that Parliament has not balanced a budget since 2007.
