Consul general pulls out of committee appearance over $9M luxury NYC condo purchase

'We haven't been given any reason why,' a Conservative MP said, but Global Affairs Canada said Tom Clark plans to appear before the committee at a later date

Published Aug 26, 2024  •  Last updated 3 minutes ago  •  4 minute read

Tom Clark, Consul General of Canada in New York. Photo by Sean Kilpatrick/The Canadian Press/File

OTTAWA — Canada’s consul general in New York Tom Clark’s testimony at a House of Commons committee studying the purchase of a $9 million luxury condo is up in the air after Conservatives say that he pulled out from a planned appearance Tuesday.

The party’s ethics critic, Michael Barrett, told the National Post that Clark’s office had agreed to appear at the House of Commons committee on government operations on August 27 to discuss the new official residence but pulled out at the last minute.

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“There was an eleventh-hour advisory that he wouldn’t be appearing, and that’s why his name doesn’t appear on tomorrow’s notice of meeting,” said Barrett.

“We haven’t been given any reason why,” he added.

The government operations committee, known as OGGO, is holding its third meeting to discuss the purchase of the new official residence on Tuesday. For now, only two real estate professionals from New York are set to appear by videoconference.

NDP MP Taylor Bachrach said there were several comments made at their last public meeting that indicated that Clark was expected to appear at their next meeting.

“So, I was a bit surprised to see that he wasn’t on the agenda,” said Bachrach.

Global Affairs Canada (GAC) said that Clark was unavailable on the date that was initially proposed but plans to speak to the committee at a further date.

“He has indicated he is happy to attend, and work is underway with the committee to find an alternate date,” said GAC spokesperson Jean-Pierre J. Godbout in an email.

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The Steinway Tower, where the condo is located, is seen from Central Park, in Manhattan’s ‘Billionaire’s Row.’ Photo by Getty Images

GAC also refuted claims that Clark rescinded his attendance, saying that they received the invitation on August 8 and the clerk of the committee followed up on August 14 and 21.

In the end, the department said it responded on August 22, noting that Clark was unavailable for the following week.

Sources on background said that it was their understanding that Clark is on leave this week but an employee at the Consulate General of Canada in New York mentioned on the phone that Clark was present in the office and offered to pass the message to his assistant.

A representative from the consulate then contacted the National Post by email to say that all questions about Clark’s appearance should be directed to GAC.

Bachrach said that his experience from being on committee is that there are sometimes legitimate reasons witnesses can’t make it on a given day, but other times, there are political games at play that prevent someone from testifying.

“I like to give the benefit of the doubt, but if efforts were being made to prevent certain witnesses from appearing, it wouldn’t be the first time,” he said.

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Liberal ministers are currently at a cabinet retreat in Halifax where they are focused on fairness and Canada-U.S. relations. They made a series of announcements including a reduction in temporary foreign workers and slapping tariffs on Chinese-made EVs.

Barrett said he is prepared to issue a summons to require Clark, a former broadcaster, to appear at the committee to testify about the new official residence.

“Justin Trudeau wanted him to be his man in New York City, and they just spent $9 million of Canadians’ hard-earned tax dollars during a cost-of-living crisis, with one in four Canadians saying that they’re going to need to use food banks this fall,” he said.

“Mr. Clark must come to committee, and that’s why we’ll issue a summons requiring him to appear.”

During the last committee meeting, GAC officials argued that the recently purchased luxury condo represents “significant financial savings” in the long run. They also said that Clark did not influence the government’s decision to purchase the piece of real estate.

They said that the former residence is now listed on the market for over $13 million — $3.9 million higher than what was paid for the new residence and that the new purchase meant avoiding $2.6 million in renovation costs and $115,000 in annual operational fees.

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In total, they estimated that the new residence would in fact represent up to $7.4 million in savings for Canadian taxpayers.

Conservative MP Garnett Genuis said it is “disingenuous” on the part of the officials to project cost savings based on the asking price of the former residence and that the current situation meant that taxpayers are on the hook for two residences at a time.

The government has also been under fire for raising the threshold of Treasury Board approval for official residences from $4 million in 2006 to $10 million in 2022 — which meant the new condo in New York was not scrutinized by the department.

An official for Treasury Board said the jump happened because GAC had taken a “very long time” to apply for an increase for purchases and it was adjusted to inflation.

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