The furore over Prime Minister Anthony Albanese’s Qantas flight upgrades is a “significant beat-up”, says Housing Minister Clare O’Neil, as she defends the PM as a “fastidious” rule follower.
This morning’s media rounds were again dominated by questions about 22 Qantas flight upgrades received by the prime minister after a new book by former Australian Financial Review columnist Joe Aston revealed Albanese would directly contact former Qantas chief Alan Joyce about personal travel.
“We’ve got clear rules on what we need to do in circumstances where an upgrade is received, and the prime minister has diligently and fastidiously followed those rules,” O’Neil told Seven’s Sunrise.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese with former Qantas CEO Alan Joyce.Credit: Louie Douvis
“He’s actually incredibly transparent with his personal affairs, which sets him apart from a lot of ways that other politicians manage things.”
O’Neil alleged the PM was being criticised for behaviour that is “really common across the parliament”.
When host Natalie Barr pushed O’Neil on the specific suggestion that Albanese was contacting Joyce to request the upgrades, she deferred to the prime minister’s frustrated press conference yesterday.
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“He gave a really comprehensive press conference yesterday where the prime minister talked through his response to those allegations. He made the pressing point here, which is that if people have an allegation to make about that then I invite them to come forward.”
Barr said the allegation had been put to Albanese, but he hadn’t directly responded, to which O’Neil replied: “You can’t walk into politics and make generalised sledges against people without backing them up. If people have instances they’re concerned about, I invite them to bring them forward.”
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