Lindenstrauss said he also received numerous complaints about Barak, who apparently outdid Itzik, spending 2,500 euro per night on a hotel room when he was visiting the Paris Air Show last June. 
State Comptroller Micha Lindenstrauss is likely to open an investigation into the international travel habits of top Israeli officials – singling out former Knesset Speaker Dalia Itzik (Kadima) and Defense Minister Ehud Barak, chairman of the Labor party,
The revelation comes in an interview with Ha'aretz's weekend magazine. The Comptroller said that he decided to launch a general investigation into travel expenses after receiving numerous complaints from Israelis on travel overspending.
According to Lindenstrauss, a letter supplied to him by an advisor, Dr. Meir Gilboa, fingers Itzik and Barak specifically for flagrant travel expenses. According to the letter, Itzik's expense account on some of her trips abroad were inordinately high. For example, he says, he received complaints from citizens that Itzik had reported spending 1,995 euros ($2,950) per night on a hotel in Paris where she stayed, and another 1,050 euros per night at a hotel in London.
Lindenstrauss said he also received numerous complaints about Barak, who apparently outdid Itzik, spending 2,500 euros per night on a hotel room when he was visiting the Paris Air Show last June. In addition, he said, Barak apparently took an entourage of 39 people with him on the trip – and many of them flew business class, in contradiction to government directives that they fly coach when on state business. The delegation also reserved more hotel rooms than necessary and at higher prices than permitted.
Lindenstrauss said that when his staff presented the information, he sent them back out into the field to gather more evidence, considering the large expense and the high positions of those involved. "My staff brought me the results of their queries, and I sent them back out, telling them to 'dig deeper.' I may open a full investigation into this subject, which will include the issues of Itzik's spending," Lindenstrauss said.