With the end of the COVID-19 pandemic, travel expenses at Investissement Québec (IQ) reached a new high this spring.
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From early April through late June, IQ spent more than $680,000 on travel expenses for all employees.
The previous high for quarterly travel expenses was nearly $500,000 and dates back to 2018, according to data released on the state-owned company’s website.
The spring travel expense spike cannot be explained by costly travel by IQ CEO Guy LeBlanc, as he only claimed $89 for three trips.
Guy LeBlanc, CEO of Investissement Québec (foreground), and Secretary of Commerce Pierre Fitzgibbon. Archive photo
How many trips?
Catherine Salvail, spokeswoman for the state-owned company, refused to tell the Journal how many trips were made with the approximately $680,000 spent.
However, she assured that IQ’s travel expenses for the first half of 2023 are “per employee comparable” to those of 2019, i.e. before the pandemic.
It must be said that the number of IQ employees fell from 571 in March 2020 to 1,220 in March 2023 as the state-owned company took over government agencies and implemented a hiring drive.
Ms. Salvail indicated that nearly two-thirds of travel expenses “are attributable to the activities of Investissement Québec International teams.” Founded in 2020, this department, headed by Hubert Bolduc, is dedicated to attracting foreign investment and promoting Quebec’s exports.
Resumption of international missions
“Since October 2022, the activities of our foreign missions have been running normally again, which has led to a significant increase in the participation of our teams in many strategic events at international level,” said the spokesman.
Note that travel expenses were even higher in the period from early January to late March 2023. They reached nearly $1.3 million, but included “travel expenses from previous periods due to circumstances surrounding COVID-19, which caused additional processing times,” explains IQ.
From April 2020 to March 2023, travel expenses averaged $345,000. This compares to the $270,000 average recorded in fiscal 2019-20 before the pandemic-related travel restrictions and IQ expansion.
Travel expenses of the Crown Corporation
July 2022 to June 2023
- Hydro-Quebec: $55.1 million
- Investissement Québec: $3.3M (including past expenditures)
- Caisse de Depot et Placement du Quebec: $2.4 million
- Société des alcools du Quebec: $2.2 million
- Loto-Québec: Information not available
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