Trudeau Is Going To Bury Us In Debt

[spaminator]

$1.03M spent hosting two government conferences: documents
Costs included $37K for staff per diems, hundreds of thousands in lunches and dinners, $1.3K for musical spoons

Author of the article:Bryan Passifiume
Published Nov 20, 2025 • Last updated 10 hours ago • 3 minute read

Taxpayers spent $71.4 billion on the federal civil service in the 2024/25 fiscal year — that's up from $39.6 billion a decade ago. Read on.
Taxpayers spent $71.4 billion on the federal civil service in the 2024/25 fiscal year — that's up from $39.6 billion a decade ago. Read on.
OTTAWA — $94,000 dinners, $915 flower arrangements and $1,340 for “musical spoons.”


That’s just a small list of expenses incurred for a pair of plush government conferences in 2024 that collectively cost taxpayers $1.03 million, according to government disclosures.


Held last year in Montreal from July 5 to 8, the 49th annual Assemblée Parlementaire de la Francophonie cost taxpayers $631,569 for the three-day event — a figure that includes accommodations, transportation, food, per diems and artistic performances.

$303K hospitality, $156K hotel rooms for Francophone conference
“You know the government is spending way too much money when it could have taken everyone out for lunch at the Keg, ordered the most expensive meal on the menu and still saved taxpayers money,” said Franco Terrazzano, federal director of the Canadian Taxpayers Association.


“It seems like every time the government hosts a conference, it goes out of its way to spend taxpayers’ money as extravagantly as possible.”

Attendees and participants billed a total of $155,565.23 in accommodation charges for 27 staff and 86 unnamed “participants,” musicians and security staff, $87,339.45 for transportation, $20,567 in per diems and $303,585.57 in hospitality charges.

In addition, three Parliamentary staffers and two security personnel charged $1,720 for a “site visit” one month before the actual event.

Pricey catering, dinners for conference
The largest hospitality charges were listed as “lunch and breaks” for delegates, totalling $198,273.81 for 475 people at the Fairmont Queen Elizabeth.


That totals roughly $417 per person.

As well, $28,940 was charged for a “dinner buffet and lunch boxes” for 85 participants.

Around $79,300 was spent for a July 8 “cultural dinner” for 475 participants catered by Montreal’s Las Olas Traiteur, who bill themselves as “creator of gourmet emotions.”

Other charges for that dinner include $11,305.23 for three performers — Mi’kmaq artist Megan Leinen, acrobatic troupe Le Monastère, and Ottawa-based trad-rock band Les Rats d’Swompe — and $1,339.67 for an undetermined number of “musical spoons” purchased from Amazon.

Months prior to the event, $53,475.97 was spent in preparation — including $6,200 on designing and printing of “cultural artistic” notebooks and delegate bags, and $6,476.25 for a July 5 “dinner for bureau members.”


$405K to host NATO Parliamentary Assembly conference
Later that year, $405,418 was spent to host the 70th annual session of the NATO Parliamentary Assembly, also held in Montreal, from Nov. 22 to 25.

The event was attended by a delegation of senators and MPs, led by chair of the Canadian NATO Parliamentary Association Julie Dzerowicz.

For that event, $46,220.89 was spent on transportation, $62,987.05 for accommodations for 25 staff, two security workers and seven panelists, $21,047.60 for per diems, and $227.546.53 for hospitality.

There was also a “site visit” to the NATO Parliamentary Association’s spring session, held from May 24 to 27 in the Bulgarian capital of Sofia, but full costs on that trip weren’t immediately known.



As well, $15,283.86 was spent on a four-day, nine-person site visit from Oct. 1 to 4.

$36,034 was spent on “health breaks” for nearly 600 participants — actually meals from Montreal oyster bay Maestro, who also received an additional $52,181 to cater the Nov. 22 welcome reception and a Nov. 25 luncheon.

Dinners for the event cost $134,000 — a cost that includes a $94,937.16 for a Nov. 24 dinner reception facilitated by Éloize Studios/Cirque Éloize.

As well, nearly $13,000 was spent on lanyards, lapel pins, pens and scarves for delegate gift bags.

“Why is the government spending a thousand dollars on musical spoons for a dinner show when it could have just grabbed a couple spoons off the tables?” Terrazzano wondered.

“The government needs to stop looking for ways to blow taxpayers’ money.”

bpassifiume@postmedia.com
X: @bryanpassifiume

Financial Disclosure - Conferences - Diplomacy - Parliament of Canada

parl.ca

$1.03M spent hosting two government conferences: documents

A pair of plush government conferences in 2024 collectively cost taxpayers $1.03 million, according to government disclosures. Read more.

torontosun.com

 

[pgs]

$1.03M spent hosting two government conferences: documents
Costs included $37K for staff per diems, hundreds of thousands in lunches and dinners, $1.3K for musical spoons

Author of the article:Bryan Passifiume
Published Nov 20, 2025 • Last updated 10 hours ago • 3 minute read

Taxpayers spent $71.4 billion on the federal civil service in the 2024/25 fiscal year — that's up from $39.6 billion a decade ago. Read on.
Taxpayers spent $71.4 billion on the federal civil service in the 2024/25 fiscal year — that's up from $39.6 billion a decade ago. Read on.
OTTAWA — $94,000 dinners, $915 flower arrangements and $1,340 for “musical spoons.”


That’s just a small list of expenses incurred for a pair of plush government conferences in 2024 that collectively cost taxpayers $1.03 million, according to government disclosures.


Held last year in Montreal from July 5 to 8, the 49th annual Assemblée Parlementaire de la Francophonie cost taxpayers $631,569 for the three-day event — a figure that includes accommodations, transportation, food, per diems and artistic performances.

$303K hospitality, $156K hotel rooms for Francophone conference
“You know the government is spending way too much money when it could have taken everyone out for lunch at the Keg, ordered the most expensive meal on the menu and still saved taxpayers money,” said Franco Terrazzano, federal director of the Canadian Taxpayers Association.


“It seems like every time the government hosts a conference, it goes out of its way to spend taxpayers’ money as extravagantly as possible.”

Attendees and participants billed a total of $155,565.23 in accommodation charges for 27 staff and 86 unnamed “participants,” musicians and security staff, $87,339.45 for transportation, $20,567 in per diems and $303,585.57 in hospitality charges.

In addition, three Parliamentary staffers and two security personnel charged $1,720 for a “site visit” one month before the actual event.

Pricey catering, dinners for conference
The largest hospitality charges were listed as “lunch and breaks” for delegates, totalling $198,273.81 for 475 people at the Fairmont Queen Elizabeth.


That totals roughly $417 per person.

As well, $28,940 was charged for a “dinner buffet and lunch boxes” for 85 participants.

Around $79,300 was spent for a July 8 “cultural dinner” for 475 participants catered by Montreal’s Las Olas Traiteur, who bill themselves as “creator of gourmet emotions.”

Other charges for that dinner include $11,305.23 for three performers — Mi’kmaq artist Megan Leinen, acrobatic troupe Le Monastère, and Ottawa-based trad-rock band Les Rats d’Swompe — and $1,339.67 for an undetermined number of “musical spoons” purchased from Amazon.

Months prior to the event, $53,475.97 was spent in preparation — including $6,200 on designing and printing of “cultural artistic” notebooks and delegate bags, and $6,476.25 for a July 5 “dinner for bureau members.”


$405K to host NATO Parliamentary Assembly conference
Later that year, $405,418 was spent to host the 70th annual session of the NATO Parliamentary Assembly, also held in Montreal, from Nov. 22 to 25.

The event was attended by a delegation of senators and MPs, led by chair of the Canadian NATO Parliamentary Association Julie Dzerowicz.

For that event, $46,220.89 was spent on transportation, $62,987.05 for accommodations for 25 staff, two security workers and seven panelists, $21,047.60 for per diems, and $227.546.53 for hospitality.

There was also a “site visit” to the NATO Parliamentary Association’s spring session, held from May 24 to 27 in the Bulgarian capital of Sofia, but full costs on that trip weren’t immediately known.



As well, $15,283.86 was spent on a four-day, nine-person site visit from Oct. 1 to 4.

$36,034 was spent on “health breaks” for nearly 600 participants — actually meals from Montreal oyster bay Maestro, who also received an additional $52,181 to cater the Nov. 22 welcome reception and a Nov. 25 luncheon.

Dinners for the event cost $134,000 — a cost that includes a $94,937.16 for a Nov. 24 dinner reception facilitated by Éloize Studios/Cirque Éloize.

As well, nearly $13,000 was spent on lanyards, lapel pins, pens and scarves for delegate gift bags.

“Why is the government spending a thousand dollars on musical spoons for a dinner show when it could have just grabbed a couple spoons off the tables?” Terrazzano wondered.

“The government needs to stop looking for ways to blow taxpayers’ money.”

bpassifiume@postmedia.com
X: @bryanpassifiume

Financial Disclosure - Conferences - Diplomacy - Parliament of Canada

parl.ca

$1.03M spent hosting two government conferences: documents

A pair of plush government conferences in 2024 collectively cost taxpayers $1.03 million, according to government disclosures. Read more.

torontosun.com

There is nothing like spending other people’s money .

 

[Tecumsehsbones]

There is nothing like spending other people’s money .

I always enjoyed it.

 

[spaminator]

Federal government's 10-day, $1.5B fiscal year spending spree
Department of National Defence far outspends all other agencies as Canada struggles to meet NATO 2% defence spending benchmark

Author of the article:Bryan Passifiume
Published Nov 27, 2025 • Last updated 6 hours ago • 3 minute read

Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney
OTTAWA — The federal government spent $1.5 billion in a 10-day end-of-fiscal-year spending spree, newly-released records suggest.


And as Canada struggles to meet NATO’s 2%-of-GDP defence spending benchmark, the Department of National Defence far outspent all other departments.


According to a response from an order paper question filed by Conservative MP Connie Cody, government departments bought hundreds of millions of dollars in equipment, office supplies, artwork and appliances, all in the span of a little more than a week,

“If you want proof that government bureaucrats have way too many tax dollars on their hands, look no further than the government’s March Madness spending sprees,” said the Canadian Taxpayers Federation’s Franco Terrazzano.

“It sure seems like government bureaucrats look for ways to burn through cash at the end of each year so they can keep demanding more money from taxpayers the next year.”



DND spent $771 million in 10 days
Between March 22 and March 31, 2025 — the end of the federal government’s fiscal year — federal departments spent $382 million on supplies, and $1.1 billion on equipment and machinery, with the Department of National Defence (DND) racking up the biggest bill at $771 million.

Those equipment costs include $3.5M to General Dynamics Ordnance and Tactical Systems for “bombs and missiles,” $1.7 million to KNDS Deutschland — the German-based manufacturer of Canada’s Leopard 2 battle tanks, and $205,000 on office furniture — with many pieces purchased from other government agencies like the Correctional Service of Canada.

$279,218 was also spent on purchasing various types of fuel from the United States Army and United States Air Force,


Among the largest purchases by DND include $12,985,600 to General Dynamics Land Systems listed as “non-military motor vehicle including trailer,” $29,790,116.86 to Irving Shipbuilding for “ship/boats/auxiliary vessel/maritime system,” and $32,140,544 for “bombs and missiles” to a vendor named “Canada Foreign Military Sales” — likely a direct purchase from the United States government.

Joe Varner, deputy director of the Conference of Defence Associations and senior fellow at Macdonald-Laurier Institute, tells the Toronto Sun the DND’s big spend isn’t by accident.

“The government’s trying to reach the 2% of GDP defence spending that they’ve committed to for NATO,” he said. “One of the only ways to do that is through foreign military sales and direct purchases.”



$4.3M for VIA Rail iPhones, CRA spent $50K on employee awards
Other big-spending departments include $99.3 million by the Department of Fisheries and Oceans, and $78.5 million by Shared Services Canada.

VIA Rail spent $4.3 million between March 22 and March 31, including $1.5 million to Rogers to purchase 2,800 phones for onboard and station staff, plus $72,777 for accessories and $25,987 on Blu Element phone cases, $543,032 on diesel, and $10,518 on locomotive parts.

The Canada Revenue Agency, who spent $6 million, paid nearly $50,000 to various vendors for several hundred awards for staff, including tangible plaudits for long service and retirement.


Some departments were unable to provide details on where money was spent, including the Department of Canadian Heritage, which listed over 450 line items as “not readily available in the organization’s tracking systems.”


Spending in some departments remain a mystery
Some departments refused to release any spending data at all, including many agencies of Canadian Heritage such as the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, Canada Council of the Arts, most museums and Telefilm Canada.

Public Safety Canada likewise refused to offer a breakdown of their nearly $2.5 million in last-minute spending, as did the Canada Border Services Agency for the $26 million they spent in the last week of March, and Correctional Service Canada for their $33 million spend.


The Canadian Security Intelligence Service declined to answer due to their mandate and operational requirements.

The RCMP said it was impossible to provide details on their $89-million spend as their expenses aren’t tracked in a central database, citing their existence as a “decentralized organization comprised of over 700 detachments in 150 communities.”

“Maybe the CRA should figure out how to operate a phone before it spends tens of thousands of dollars showering its bureaucrats with awards,” Terrazzano said.

“If you asked Canadians whether they would rather pay for a brand-new hospital or bureaucrats’ 10-day March madness spending spree, I bet most Canadians would choose the hospital.”

bpassifiume@postmedia.com
X: @bryanpassifiume

Q-332 (45-1) - Written Questions - House of Commons of Canada

Federal government's 10-day, $1.5B fiscal year spending spree

The federal government spent $1.5 billion in a 10-day end-of-fiscal-year spending spree, newly-released records suggest.

torontosun.com

 

[spaminator]

Mark Carney outspent Justin Trudeau on 2025 cabinet retreat: Documents
September's cabinet planning forum at Pan Pacific Toronto cost $532Gs, more than Trudeau's 2023 Charlottetown retreat

Author of the article:Bryan Passifiume
Published Dec 04, 2025 • 2 minute read

Mark Carney at Liberal cabinet retreat, Toronto, Thursday, Sept. 4, 2025.
Prime Minister Mark Carney leaves the Liberal cabinet retreat in Toronto on Thursday, Sept. 4, 2025.
OTTAWA — Prime Minister Mark Carney’s two-day cabinet retreat cost thousands more than similar retreats organized by his predecessor, new documents revealed.


According to a response to an order paper question filed by Conservative MP Kerry Diotte, the pre-session cabinet confab — held this year at the Pan Pacific Toronto in York Mills — cost taxpayers $532,372.24.


That’s more than two recent cabinet retreats organized by former prime minister Justin Trudeau — his 2023 retreat in Charlottetown, P.E.I., cost $485,196, while the one held in 2022 in Vancouver cost $471,070.

“If you’re spending thousands of dollars more than Trudeau on meetings, you’re spending too much money,” said Franco Terrazzano, the federal director of the Canadian Taxpayers Federation.

“It’s going to be hard for politicians to explain to taxpayers why all of the meeting rooms in Ottawa weren’t good enough.”


Variety of agencies, departments spent money on cabinet planning forum
Booking the venue for this year’s cabinet planning forum cost the Privy Council Office $250,402.35 — with accommodations at $18,446.41, $6,696.37 for airfare, $8,176.90 for meals and incidentals and $4,985.32 for other transportation.

As well, $78,774.14 was paid to Newmarket A/V rental house Duoson Multimedia, $39,870.13 to Commissionaires for security and $8,072.72 for shipping costs.

Flying the prime minister one way from Ottawa to Toronto on Sept. 4 — plus the plane’s empty return flight to Ottawa — cost $3,015.05 for 2,267.7 litres of fuel.

A wide variety of government agencies and departments spent money to facilitate the event — Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada spent $4,798.03, including $3,558.19 on airfare to Toronto for the minister and their chief of staff, as well as meals, taxi and hotel accommodations for the pair.


Some departments not forthcoming with info
Employment and Social Development Canada spent $16,994.11 — more than most other departments — but provided no details on how that money was spent.

The RCMP spent $28,927 on the cabinet planning forum, but likewise declined to provide a breakdown due to security concerns.

Interpretation services were provided by the Translation Bureau — an agency of Public Services and Procurement Canada — costing $30,622, including $8,663 in travel expenses, $11,226 for interpretation services and $10,734 for travel time, based on the employee group’s hourly rate.

Government translators are paid a set per diem for travel.

The Treasury Board of Canada secretariat paid $2,870.85 in travel expenses for Treasury Board President Shafqat Ali, while Health Canada paid $4,529 so Health Minister Marjorie Michel and her chief of staff could attend the retreat.

“Carney told Canadians he was going to cut waste and he should start by not dropping half a million bucks on meetings,” Terrazzano said.

“We need a culture change in Ottawa and that needs to start with the prime minister and ministers respecting taxpayers’ hard-earned money.”

bpassifiume@postmedia.com
X: @bryanpassifiume

Q-334 (45-1) - Written Questions - House of Commons of Canada

Mark Carney outspent Justin Trudeau on 2025 cabinet retreat: Documents

The federal government's 2025 cabinet planning forum at Pan Pacific Toronto cost more than ones held by ex-PM Justin Trudeau. Read more.

torontosun.com

 

[spaminator]

Mark Carney outspent Justin Trudeau on 2025 cabinet retreat: Documents
September's cabinet planning forum at Pan Pacific Toronto cost $532Gs, more than Trudeau's 2023 Charlottetown retreat

Author of the article:Bryan Passifiume
Published Dec 04, 2025 • 2 minute read

Mark Carney at Liberal cabinet retreat, Toronto, Thursday, Sept. 4, 2025.
Prime Minister Mark Carney leaves the Liberal cabinet retreat in Toronto on Thursday, Sept. 4, 2025.
OTTAWA — Prime Minister Mark Carney’s two-day cabinet retreat cost thousands more than similar retreats organized by his predecessor, new documents revealed.


According to a response to an order paper question filed by Conservative MP Kerry Diotte, the pre-session cabinet confab — held this year at the Pan Pacific Toronto in York Mills — cost taxpayers $532,372.24.


That’s more than two recent cabinet retreats organized by former prime minister Justin Trudeau — his 2023 retreat in Charlottetown, P.E.I., cost $485,196, while the one held in 2022 in Vancouver cost $471,070.

“If you’re spending thousands of dollars more than Trudeau on meetings, you’re spending too much money,” said Franco Terrazzano, the federal director of the Canadian Taxpayers Federation.

“It’s going to be hard for politicians to explain to taxpayers why all of the meeting rooms in Ottawa weren’t good enough.”


Variety of agencies, departments spent money on cabinet planning forum
Booking the venue for this year’s cabinet planning forum cost the Privy Council Office $250,402.35 — with accommodations at $18,446.41, $6,696.37 for airfare, $8,176.90 for meals and incidentals and $4,985.32 for other transportation.

As well, $78,774.14 was paid to Newmarket A/V rental house Duoson Multimedia, $39,870.13 to Commissionaires for security and $8,072.72 for shipping costs.

Flying the prime minister one way from Ottawa to Toronto on Sept. 4 — plus the plane’s empty return flight to Ottawa — cost $3,015.05 for 2,267.7 litres of fuel.

A wide variety of government agencies and departments spent money to facilitate the event — Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada spent $4,798.03, including $3,558.19 on airfare to Toronto for the minister and their chief of staff, as well as meals, taxi and hotel accommodations for the pair.


Some departments not forthcoming with info
Employment and Social Development Canada spent $16,994.11 — more than most other departments — but provided no details on how that money was spent.

The RCMP spent $28,927 on the cabinet planning forum, but likewise declined to provide a breakdown due to security concerns.

Interpretation services were provided by the Translation Bureau — an agency of Public Services and Procurement Canada — costing $30,622, including $8,663 in travel expenses, $11,226 for interpretation services and $10,734 for travel time, based on the employee group’s hourly rate.

Government translators are paid a set per diem for travel.

The Treasury Board of Canada secretariat paid $2,870.85 in travel expenses for Treasury Board President Shafqat Ali, while Health Canada paid $4,529 so Health Minister Marjorie Michel and her chief of staff could attend the retreat.

“Carney told Canadians he was going to cut waste and he should start by not dropping half a million bucks on meetings,” Terrazzano said.

“We need a culture change in Ottawa and that needs to start with the prime minister and ministers respecting taxpayers’ hard-earned money.”

bpassifiume@postmedia.com
X: @bryanpassifiume

Q-334 (45-1) - Written Questions - House of Commons of Canada

Mark Carney outspent Justin Trudeau on 2025 cabinet retreat: Documents

The federal government's 2025 cabinet planning forum at Pan Pacific Toronto cost more than ones held by ex-PM Justin Trudeau. Read more.

torontosun.com

 

[spaminator]

Federal public servants earning more than $150Gs grew 96% over five years
27,261 federal public workers received more than $150,000 in salary, benefits, OT and bonuses in the 2024-25 fiscal year

Author of the article:Bryan Passifiume
Published Dec 05, 2025 • Last updated 1 day ago • 2 minute read

Parliament Hill from the Bank of Canada plaza in Ottawa.
Parliament Hill from the Bank of Canada plaza in Ottawa.
OTTAWA — The number of federal public servants who took home more than $150,000 in the last fiscal year grew by 96% over the past five years, newly released documents suggest.


That’s a 28% increase from the year previous, according to the Treasury Board Secretariat.


In a response to an order paper question filed by Richmond Hill South MP Vincent Ho, the Secretariat said that 27,261 federal public workers received more than $150,000 in salary, benefits, overtime and bonuses in the 2024-25 fiscal year (FY).

That’s compared to the 21,271 public servants with annual take-homes of more than $150,000 recorded in the 2023-24 fiscal year.

In the 2024-25 fiscal year, 20,200 public workers earned more than $150,000, while 4,960 earned $200,000 or more, 1,399 earned $250,000 or more, 654 earned more than $300,000, and 42 earned over $400,000.

What they made previously
Public servants in higher salary brackets saw steady increases over the past five years except for those who took home $500,000 — only six workers earned more than half a million dollars in government pay, compared to 17 in FY 2023-24 and 2022-23, and six in 2021-22 and 2020-21.


As for how many federal workers earned more than $150,000 in previous years:

— FY 2023-24: 21,271

— FY 2022-23: 14,257

— FY 2021-22: 12,340

— FY 2020-21: 13,842

These counts, according to the documents, include all executive branch employees, core public administration, and federal agencies across all classifications, including indeterminate (permanent employee), term (hired for a certain period of time), casual (short-term hires), and students — and also include deputy ministers and Governor-in-Council appointees.

The numbers do not include federal judges, Royal Canadian Mounted Police and Canadian Forces members, as they are not considered members of the federal public service.

As well, employees of Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS), the National Capital Commission, Invest Canada Hub, and the Northern Pipeline Agency are not included in this list, as they maintain different payment systems outside of the central federal Phoenix pay system.



Federal bureaucracy never been bigger
The federal public servant population is currently the largest in Canadian history, growing by 40% over the past decade, while Canada’s population over the same time period only grew by 14%.

This year’s numbers put the current public service population at nearly 358,000, making the federal government Canada’s biggest employer.

As the federal government does not publish an annual “sunshine list,” numbers of high-salary federal public servants aren’t as readily known as their provincial counterparts.

According to this year’s disclosure, more than 377,000 Ontario public servants earned over $100,000 last fiscal year, topped by Ontario Power Generation CEO Kenneth Hartwick, whose salary and benefits amounted to around $2 million.

bpassifiume@postmedia.com
X: @bryanpassifiume

Q-465 (45-1) - Written Questions - House of Commons of Canada

Federal public servants earning more than $150Gs grew 96% over five years

27,261 federal public workers received over $150,000 in the last fiscal year — a number that's soared over the past five years. Learn more.

torontosun.com

 

[spaminator]

'Swiftonomics' report says concerts cost City Hall $3.6M
The report, sent to councillors last year but not previously made public, says police made bracelets for two horses for an image that 'exploded' online

Author of the article:Justin Holmes
Published Jan 03, 2026 • Last updated 1 day ago • 5 minute read

Taylor Swift performs in Toronto in 2024
Taylor Swift performs during her first of six shows at the Rogers Centre on Thursday, November 14, 2024. A briefing note shows city hall spent millions of dollars on operations related to the concerts. Photo by Jack Boland/Toronto Sun files
The City of Toronto racked up roughly $3.6 million in costs related to 2024’s concert series by Taylor Swift, including nearly $2 million by police, more than $1 million by the TTC and six-figure totals by a handful of departments at City Hall.


Those figures are from City Hall’s so-called Swiftonomics report, a briefing note that was sent to city councillors in late April but not made public. City Hall provided it after a request by the Toronto Sun.


The report claims the November 2024 concerts generated $39.7 million in government revenue, but only 20% of that went to the City of Toronto – and a mere $882,000 was local indirect revenue.

“This analysis underscores the challenges that cities face in fully capturing the financial benefits of hosting major events,” the report says beneath a table of government revenue estimates.

The report also attributes all manner of spending to what it calls the “Swift lift” – some of it obviously unrelated, such as a box office boost at Toronto’s movie theatres.


While the Toronto Police Service’s bill came to $2.6 million, the briefing note called the net expense “similar to major playoff games” in pro sports. That encompassed work cops did at the concert venue – the Rogers Centre – before, during and after the shows, as well as hotel security.


Notably, police partly closed the Gardiner Expressway for a motorcade to shuttle the singer downtown.

The $2.6-million cost was offset by $680,000 for paid duty shifts by Toronto Police, including two officers working at the Ritz-Carlton each day.

Toronto’s economic development and culture division spent $131,000, including thousands of dollars to advertise a poetry initiative previously reported on by the Sun. But $59,000 went toward a “volunteer ambassador” program, in which 192 volunteers told visitors where they could eat or stay in the city.

In a brief statement, City Hall told the Sun that $59,000 paid for a contractor to run the program, plus lighting, signs and a generator to power its operations at Metro Hall, as well as catering, “backpack flags” and toques for the volunteers. That money came from the city’s regular budget for cultural events, the statement said.

Revenue chart from Toronto Swiftonomics report
Police made horse bracelets, won internet clout
Meanwhile, the TTC reported that increasing bus, streetcar and subway service for the six concert days involved a $1.7-million cost but only an additional $588,000 in revenue. Metrolinx did better, spending $827,800 more against $1.2 million in extra revenue.


Toronto’s emergency management division rang up $134,000 in staffing costs, not including “the significant time spent on planning for the events,” the report said. The transportation division spent $333,000 managing traffic, which included installing signs and cameras.

The total cost to City Hall, going by those figures, would be $3.6 million.

“While these initiatives incurred costs,” the report says, “the initiatives delivered significant value by driving economic activity, promoting the city’s reputation on a global stage and by laying the groundwork for improved delivery of future events.”

The police, meanwhile, “reported that the concerts provided opportunities to forge genuine connections through the exchange of bracelets, not only among fans but also with venue staff and security.”

The briefing note brags that a social media post on X of two police horses, dressed in gigantic bracelets made by police communications staff, “exploded” online and the “strong sense of female empowerment” is good for recruiting officers.



But while the report boasts about “community engagement” by police, it’s the “immense visibility on a global scale” that Toronto gained as one of 51 stops on Swift’s tour that seems to be the apparent justification for the spending. Indeed, the report’s figures show almost all of the money came from outside of the city.

“Of the $152 million in direct spending, $141 million – nearly 93% – was estimated to come from out-of-town visitors and $11 million was estimated to come from local Swifties,” the report says.

And while the report cites the pro-tourism non-profit Destination Toronto in saying the concerts “brought in $282 million in total economic impact,” it also quotes figures from a Moneris report – somewhat selectively.

Moneris reported clothing sales saw a 49% lift and accessory shops got a 102% jolt over the previous week, and hotel occupancy rates and foreign spending were up. Total spending downtown was up 45% from the week before, it reported.


Not mentioned in the Swiftonomics report, however, is that Moneris found that total restaurant spending only grew by 2% during the first three concerts.



One stat’s a Hollywood phony
In a real stretch, the briefing note says that “possibly due to visitors rounding out their trips or finding alternative entertainment, cinemas saw a 30% spending boost and live theatre saw a 130% increase.”

However, Swift’s final Toronto dates overlapped with the opening weekend for the films Wicked and Gladiator II, which brought with it a 370% increase to the previous weekend’s box office totals, according to website boxofficemojo.com.

It’s possible more city money was spent selling Swift. As the Sun reported last year, Destination Toronto worked with three “paid influencers” to promote the concerts.


One councillor who wasn’t around in April to get the report is Jennifer McKelvie, who brought forward the motion that called for its creation. She quit City Hall to become the Liberal MP for Ajax.

McKelvie’s July 2024 motion rebranded downtown streets with ceremonial “Taylor Swift Way” signs, which are tied to some of the promotional spending accounted for in the Swiftonomics report.

Even when memories of the tour were fresh, the much ballyhooed “Swift lift” was viewed by critics as an economic fairytale.

“If economic growth were that simple, provinces could line up concerts year-round and watch GDP soar,” a “Not-So-Swiftonomics” paper from TD Economics argued in December 2024.

jholmes@postmedia.com

https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1857173087273288082

Toronto Concert Drives 45% Spending Surge | Moneris Data Services

Moneris data reveals that the big concert in Toronto didn’t just captivate audiences—they were a game-changer for the city.

dataservices.moneris.com

'Swiftonomics' report says concerts cost City Hall $3.6M

The City of Toronto racked up roughly $3.6 million in costs related to 2024’s concert series by Taylor Swift. Read more.

torontosun.com