Justin Trudeau’s Jamaica holiday cost more than last year, records show

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s family vacation to Jamaica over the holidays came with a price tag higher than last year’s, new documents show.

According to government responses to order paper questions posed by Conservative House Leader Andrew Scheer, Trudeau’s trip to the Caribbean nation cost roughly $234,015 – up from last year’s cost of roughly $162,000.

RCMP security costs alone came in at $162,051 this year, compared to last year’s bill of roughly $115,526. The CBC first reported on the tabled documents Thursday morning.

“It is the RCMP’s legislated mandate to provide 24/7 protection to the sitting Prime Minister and their family,” the government’s response reads.

Trudeau and his family vacationed in Jamaica from Dec. 26 to Jan. 4 – a holiday trip they’ve taken in the past and faced repeated scrutiny.

This year, Trudeau returned to Ottawa to face criticism for staying at an oceanfront villa in Jamaica at no cost, as reported by the National Post. Prospect Estate and Villas located near Ocho Rios is owned by businessman Peter Green. The Green family has known the Trudeaus for decades.

The opposition Conservatives criticized the Prime Minister’s Office’s framing of the trip. Before the trip took place, the PMO initially said that it had consulted with the ethics commissioner, that the Trudeau family was paying for the stay, and that Trudeau would reimburse the cost of travelling on a government plane.

However, the PMO later said that while Trudeau had reimbursed the government for the equivalent of the cost of commercial flights, they stayed at “no cost at a location owned by family friends.”

The PMO then said on Jan. 10 “the prime minister and his family were staying with family friends at no cost.”

Government House Leader