Top government officials have run up bills of more than HK$24 million for business trips in the last five years.
The figure emerged as the Audit Commission prepares to release its verdict on whether the chief executive should be allowed to stay in luxury hotel suites.
The commission reviewed the mechanism for booking overseas travel by Chief Executive Donald Tsang Yam-kuen after it was revealed he spent almost US$7,000 on a one-night stay in the presidential suite at a hotel in the Brazilian capital Brasilia. It is due to release its report today.
Figures revealed yesterday in response to questions from lawmakers show that Tsang ran up a travel bill of almost HK$10.7 million between the start of his second term in July 2007 and January this year.
The outgoing chief executive was not the government's only frequent flyer. In response to another question from a lawmaker, the Constitutional and Mainland Affairs Bureau revealed bureau chiefs, their undersecretaries and political assistants spent HK$13.3 million on travel abroad.
The travel bills of the chief secretary, financial secretary and secretary for justice were not requested by lawmakers, but a spokeswoman for justice chief Wong Yan-lung said he had spent HK$717,536 on 23 trips.
Chief Secretary Stephen Lam Sui-lung's spokesman said he had made four trips since taking office in September. A spokesman for the financial secretary would not comment.