New York property records show that a unit in the Plaza Tower, a co-operative highrise on East 60th St. between Lexington and Park Aves., was transferred to Wallin for $379,000 (U.S.) in June 2005.
The former journalist was nearing the end of her term as consul general of Canada in New York, a position she held from 2002 to 2006, which provided her with an official residence at 550 Park Ave., a short walk away from the apartment.
On Tuesday, Wallin confirmed she owns the home, which is about two blocks away from Central Park on the southern edge of the Upper East Side of Manhattan, but said it was irrelevant.
“I have for many years owned a small bachelor apartment in New York for personal use, which is infrequent given my workload. This has nothing to do with any of the current issues and therefore I will have nothing more to say on the matter,” Wallin, 59, wrote in an email Tuesday evening.
She did not answer questions directly about whether anyone else is currently occupying the apartment and paying her rent, the last time she was there, whether she has ever stayed there while on Senate business or claimed travel or living expenses for time spent in New York, N.Y.
The telephone number listed for the apartment rang without a voicemail system kicking in when the Star tried calling Tuesday afternoon.
Wallin, who Prime Minister Stephen Harper brought into the Senate in December 2008, is having her travel expenses scrutinized by the accounting firm Deloitte at the request of the Senate Standing Committee on Internal Economy.
According to quarterly expense reports available online, from Nov. 30, 2010, to Nov. 30, 2012, Wallin claimed only $29,423 for “regular” travel between Ottawa and Saskatchewan, the province where she claims her primary residence to be.
Over the same two-year time period for which records are available, Wallin claimed $321,027 for “other” travel in Canada and around the world.
The Senate committee also called in external auditors to review the living expenses of Conservative Senator Mike Duffy, Liberal Senator Mac Harb and Independent Senator Patrick Brazeau.
The committee launched a review of all secondary living expenses following media reports last year that those three senators were inappropriately billing taxpayers for their time spent in the National Capital Region despite evidence that they live their most of the time.
Wallin, who has two residences in Wadena and a condo in Toronto, stays in a hotel when she is in Ottawa on parliamentary business.
Original Article
Source: thestar.com
Author: Joanna Smith
No comments:
Post a Comment