MacKay Took Jet to Lobster Cook-Off, Too

The guy just has a thing for seafood, OK? And using expensive government resources to fly around the Maritimes.

The day after Defence Minister Peter MacKay called up a Comorant search-and-rescue helicopter to pick him up from a fishing vacation in Newfoundland, he used a government Challenger to fly to a lobster cook-off in his Nova Scotia riding. Government jets are only supposed to be used for official business, which is just what MacKay says is the case of his trip from London, Ont., to the 76th Annual Pictou Lobster Carnival, where he retained his title of lobster-banding champion. We'll let you judge whether that counts as "official government business" or not, but it is more than a little guffaw-worthy that for two consecutive days in July, 2010, one of the nation's most powerful men exploited government aircraft to make sure he could eat aquatic animals. Don't be surprised to find out MacKay commandeered a CF-18 to get to hit up an oyster-shucking contest in Miramichi the next day.

Related:

MacKay Took Search-and-Rescue Chopper Home from Fishing Trip