$18M spent to turn Milan consulate into climate change showcase
· Toronto Sun
Efforts by Global Affairs Canada to convert an Italian consular office into a showcase for Canada’s commitment to climate change cost taxpayers over $18 million.
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According to documents made public this week via a report published Monday by Blacklock’s Reporter , the government made the decision in 2020 to reopen Canada’s previously-closed consulate in Milan, Italy — spending $18,619,067 to retrofit the office into a “showpiece” of energy efficiency.
“This commitment to environmental sustainability is emblematic of Canada’s efforts to combat climate change and its role as a world leader in the development of clean technologies,” Blacklock’s reported the Canadian Embassy saying at the time.
Milan consulate largely deals with trade
A May 25, 2022 backgrounder said the new Milan mission would largely be dedicated to furthering trade programs, with four of the five full-time consular staff at the site dedicated to that end.
“In Feb. 2020, the Minister of Foreign Affairs approved the initiative to reinstate a chancery in Milan, Italy,” read an excerpt from the backgrounder, entitled “‘fast track’ of procurement for design build in Milan, Italy.”
“The new mission will require suitable accommodations to support both trade and consular programs.”
The backgrounder added the project would be completed using a “modified design-build” (MDB) approach — where the government provides contractors partial design plans, and leaves it to the contractor to finish the design work and oversee construction.
Canada closed down the Milan consulate in 2007.
MDB projects are common on complex builds undertaken by the Department of National Defence and Defence Construction Canada — a long-lived crown corporation responsible for large-scale defence and national-interest construction projects.
$37K spent on art displays
Documents say the $18.6 million office, which reopened in 2023, took three years to complete by Italian contractors.
Invoices obtained by Blacklock’s via Canada’s Access to Information Act included $37,295 spent on what’s described as “art displays,” and $6,400 spent on hiring a photographer.
This isn’t the first time Global Affairs Canada has been criticized for questionable spending.
In 2024, the Toronto Sun reported GAC spent $3.3 million on alcoholic beverages over the previous five years — averaging about $51,000 per month.
In Canada’s embassy in Manila, diplomats spent $4,536.42 on wine for 2023 Canada Day celebrations, a combined $4,798.39 on two separate bulk wine purchases, $723.67 on Crown Royal Whisky, and $1,146.10 for a March 31, 2023 purchase of ice wine.