The Environment Ministry spent nearly $1 million on flights in just less than a year in 2022, data shows.
It splashed $913,000 on domestic and international travel between January 1 and November 29, data from the ministry released under the Official Information Act showed.
The ministry advises the Government on policies related to the environment.
When asked about the expenses by ACT's Simon Court at a Parliamentary Select Committee last month, Environment Secretary Vicky Robertson said she had not yet directed her ministry's staff to use "different modes of transport but, as we get to trying to meet our budgets, I imagine that we will have to look at those things".
The data also showed the ministry spent $251 on public transport fares in the same January-November period, but splashed $97,225 on taxis, shuttles and ubers.
"If bureaucrats are going to lecture Kiwis, they should lead by example," said Court, ACT's Environment spokesperson. "Instead, they tell us what to do while flying and driving around the country.
"This is next-level hypocrisy."
Speaking to the Select Committee meeting on February 16, Robertson said: "We have an overall emissions budget for the ministry - and a sustainability budget - so within that, we have actually reduced our total emissions through the last year."
Robertson said the ministry's emissions were 66.5 percent lower than in 2017/18.
She said there was also a significant shift in where ministry staff were located.
"We have reduced our profile in terms of people working from the regions so we are not having travel costs increasing through that, so that is actually shifting our profile as well," she said.
"If we look over time, we are reducing our emissions profile through time.
"There is a general view around our travel emissions and making sure that those are coming down over time and obviously, post-COVID, some of that has increased on the previous year - but those things we will be part of our emissions reduction efforts as time goes on."
