‘The Prime Minister personally paid for his tickets,’ is just about all a PMO spokesperson would say about how he managed to secure a number of the expensive, difficult-to-find tickets
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During the Sajjan controversy, National Post sent PMO numerous questions about Trudeau’s acquisition of tickets to a Nov. 22 Taylor Swift concert in Toronto. The prime minister was seen in attendance with Sophie Grégoire and their daughter.
A PMO spokesperson declined to answer nearly all questions, such as how the prime minister managed to secure multiple tickets for the event, who he bought them from and how much he paid.
“The Prime Minister personally paid for his tickets” is all PMO spokesperson Jenna Ghassabeh would say in an email to National Post.
“If Justin Trudeau has nothing to hide then he should have no problem telling Canadians how he came about the tickets and how much he paid for them. Did he pay the same price any other Canadian would need to pay for those same seats, or did he get a special discount?,” Barrett said in a statement.
PavCo, the B.C. crown corporation that owns the venue hosting the show, has previously received federal funding. A spokesperson for the organization stated last week it had offered tickets to many elected officials, but Sajjan was the only one who took it up on the offer.
Sajjan admitted he accepted the gift despite already having purchased four show tickets for his family that he then resold.
“We already had four tickets before, which we didn’t end up going to in Toronto, and we sold those at cost to other friends,” Sajjan told reporters last week.
In exchange for the tickets from PavCo, Sajjan said he donated $1,500 to the Greater Vancouver Food Bank. His office also noted the ticket gift was green lit by the federal Ethics Commissioner because the donation was approximately the same value as the two concert tickets.
“After reviewing the circumstances and reflecting on the conversations about (the) offer of tickets to the Eras Tour, Minister Sajjan declined the tickets on Friday and did not attend the show,” read a statement from Sajjan’s office to media Monday.
“We have already seen one of Trudeau’s Ministers caught using his status and connections in relation to securing tickets. Justin Trudeau should just answer clearly, but Canadians can’t trust what he says on issues big or small,” he said in a statement.
Though Trudeau argued that the Aga Khan was a longtime family friend so the trip was an acceptable gift, then-commissioner Mary Dawson disagreed that their relationship fit the legal definition of a friendship and concluded the prime minister had broken the law.
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