The Mayor of Quebec Bruno Marchand will be accompanied by at least five other people from the City of Quebec, during his trip to Scandinavian cities next March. The cost of their presence abroad alone is estimated at $36,000.
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This figure, released in a public document Thursday morning, does not include the costs incurred by the mayor himself or his press officer, who could also accompany him. It is therefore reasonable to believe that this mission abroad will cross the threshold of $40,000, perhaps even $50,000.
The vice-president of the executive committee, Pierre-Luc Lachance, will be part of the trip, as will Isabelle Dubois (deputy director general, planning, mobility and urban security), Karine Breton (deputy director of the mayor’s cabinet), Sébastien Goupil (director of the International Relations Office) and Catherine Labonté (international relations advisor).
“An amount of $36,000 is to be provided for their air and ground travel, meals and accommodation costs,” the document reads.
This mission abroad will focus mainly on mobility in anticipation of the deployment of a 19 km tramway line in the coming years in Quebec. The City of Quebec says it wants to learn from best practices abroad in winter conditions, although the cities visited do not receive as much snow as the capital.
A stop in Sweden too
We also learn that the mayor will make a stop in Malmö in Sweden, in addition to visiting the Nordic cities of Copenhagen in Denmark and Helsinki in Finland, between March 22 and 31.
“The objective of this mission, coordinated by the International Relations Office of the City of Quebec, is to learn from and draw inspiration from cities considered to be true pioneers on a planetary scale in terms of: Mobility (active and integrated) and structuring transportation, strategies and actions aimed at countering climate change, planning, urban design and sustainable housing,” reads the summary of the executive committee.
Mission criticized
The head of Transition Quebec, Jackie Smith, sharply criticized yesterday this mission abroad that she associates with an expenditure of time, money and GHG (Greenhouse Gas).
“You don’t have to sit on a tram in Helsinki to understand what works and what doesn’t. It is also not essential to be photographed with happy cyclists in Copenhagen to know how to set up a network of cycle paths, ”she reacted in a press release.
More details to come.