Labor ministers curtail trip expenses following Barak's Paris splurge

Have Labor Party ministers learned a lesson from the public outrage over the exorbitant expenditures of their party chief, Defense Minister Ehud Barak, at the Paris Air Show in June?

Based on data obtained by Haaretz, it seems the answer may be yes: Expenses were significantly lower when three Labor ministers attended an international conference in Paris last week.

Social Affairs Minister Isaac Herzog, Industry Minister Benjamin Ben-Eliezer and Minority Affairs Minister Avishay Braverman were all at the conference, sponsored by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development.

They went because Israel is now a candidate to join the OECD - a step considered of great political and economic importance - and they wanted to further its candidacy.

All three racked up far lower hotel bills, for both themselves and their aides, than Barak's delegation did, and one even flew back to Israel in the middle of the night after the conference to save the cost of another night at the hotel.

All three flew to Paris on Wednesday to attend the Thursday conference. Herzog then flew back Thursday night, and the others Friday morning. Each minister brought along a bodyguard and two advisors, meaning the total delegation comprised of 12 people.

The ministers and their bodyguards stayed at the Napoleon Hotel, in rooms that cost 250 euros (about NIS 1,375) a night. Barak paid 2,500 euros per night for his suite at the Intercontinental Hotel in June.

The advisors stayed at a cheaper hotel, where rooms cost only 125 euros (NIS 687) per night.

Thus the total cost of the trip, including plane tickets and other expenses, ran to about NIS 55,000.

In contrast, Barak's delegation to the Paris Air Show totaled 50 people, including 16 in his personal entourage, and the delegation's outlay on hotel bills alone came to NIS 944,000, of which NIS 527,000 was just for Barak's crew.

Meanwhile, Israel Defense Forces Chief of Staff Gabi Ashkenazi has also joined the new modesty trend: He ordered his staff to find him a room in a "nonluxury" hotel for his three-day trip to Germany this week. And to ensure that his orders were carried out, he had them download photos of the hotel they chose from the Internet and show them to him before making a reservation, so that he could be sure it was not excessively posh.