Taxpayer-funded Eras Tour tickets returned by federal minister

While tens of thousands of fans packed Vancouver’s BC Place for the last shows of Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour this weekend, a federal cabinet minister wasn’t one of them.

Harjit Sajjan, the minister for the Pacific Economic Development Agency of Canada, came under fire in the days before the record-breaking tour’s final stop after accepting taxpayer-funded tickets.

An emailed statement from the Vancouver South MP’s office Monday confirmed that he did not go to the concert, which he said last week he would attend with his daughter.

“After reviewing the circumstances and reflecting on the conversations about (the) offer of tickets to the Eras Tour, Minister Sajjan declined the tickets on Friday and did not attend the show,” the statement said.

PavCo, the owner and operator of BC Place, told CTV News they offered tickets to stakeholders – including elected officials – a procedure it called the “normal course of business.”

The only politician who accepted the offer was Sajjan, according to PavCo.

According to Sajjan’s office, he received clearance from the federal ethics commissioner before accepting the tickets.

Sajjan was asked to make a donation to the local food bank as part of the offer.

“His donation to the Greater Vancouver Food Bank stands,” Monday’s statement says.

Sajjan’s office previously said the donation was for $1,500.

With files from CTV News Vancouver’s Abigail Turner