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Australian politicians are almost always opting to fly with Qantas on taxpayer-funded trips, despite Virgin offering cheaper tickets.<br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> Federal MPs flew with the national carrier <br> <br> for 80 per cent of work trips last year despite it <br> <br> not always being the cheapest route, according to travel data provided to the government.<br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> While politicians and their staffers are required to book the <br> <br> cheapest flight, it also has to be the most <br> <br> efficient, with Qantas offering the most routes between major cities.<br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> MPs are banned from accruing frequent flyer points on taxpayer-funded trips like ordinary <br> <br> Aussies can, but they can can receive lifetime status credits, which allows access <br> <br> to airport lounges and flight upgrades.<br> <br> <br> <br> 'How else can one explain the extraordinary dominance of Qantas in securing <br> <br> bookings by parliamentarians and their staff?' Myriam Robin wrote in an opinion piece for the Australian Financial Review.<br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> 'There's nothing like accruing status credits on someone else's <br> <br> dime.'<br> <br> <br> <br> Transport Minister Catherine King has since committed to a review of flight bookings by government officials which will <br> <br> be conducted by the Department of Finance this year, <br> <br> despite there being just two months left of 2024.<br> <br> <br> <br> Politicians' preference for Qantas may also be put down to the airline's exclusive <br> <br> invite-only 'Chairman's Lounge'.<br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> Australian politicians are almost always opting to fly with Qantas on taxpayer-funded trips, despite Virgin offering cheaper <br> <br> tickets. (pictured is Anthony Albanese, with former Qantas <br> <br> boss Alan Joyce, and fiancee Jodie Haydon)<br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> Read More<br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> EXCLUSIVE<br> <br> <br> <br> The Flying Kanga-RORT - why you're footing the bill as <br> <br> airlines wine and dine pollies in VIP club<br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> Daily Mail Australia in August revealed that nearly every single federal <br> <br> politician in the country has accepted free membership of <br> <br> the club.<br> <br> <br> <br> Qantas and the Albanese government have both denied the airline enjoys any disproportionate level of influence over the country's <br> <br> political classes.<br> <br> <br> <br> A Daily Mail Australia audit of the members' interest registers - in both the House <br> <br> of Representatives and the Senate - revealed almost 93 <br> <br> per cent of the nation's leaders have been 'gifted' <br> <br> membership to the lavish, all-inclusive lounge.<br> <br> <br> <br> The high profile ranks of government giftees include Prime Minister Anthony Albanese as <br> <br> well as every member of his 22-person Cabinet, his seven-person Outer <br> <br> Ministry and all 12 assistant ministers.<br> <br> <br> <br> While most politicians declared their Qantas' privileges as a 'gift', Labor <br> <br> MP Marion Scrymgour listed her membership as her 'Chairman Lounge entitlement'.<br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> Daily Mail Australia in August revealed that nearly every single <br> <br> federal politician in the country has accepted free membership of <br> <br> Qantas' exclusive Chairman's Lounge.<br> <br> <br> <br> And it's not just politicians on the take, with more <br> <br> than 60 MPs - including Marles, Chalmers, King, Bill Shorten, <br> <br> Zali Steggall and Tanya Plibersek - disclosing their spouses have also been granted unfettered, independent <br> <br> access to Qantas' luxurious members only lounge.<br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> Often touted as 'the most exclusive club in the country',<br> <br> membership to the Chairman's Lounge has long been veiled in secrecy.<br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> Even the entrances to each of the country's six opulent VIP clubs <br> <br> - in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Adelaide, Canberra and Perth airports <br> <br> - are suitably discreet.<br> <br> <br> <br> Though, once inside, the designer lounges are immediately more ostentatious,<br> <br> with free à la carte fine dining, table service, a decadent selection of wines and <br> <br> Champagne and a discreet army of dedicated lounge attendants.<br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> Membership to the club is 'priceless' - it cannot be <br> <br> bought for any amount of money nor obtained via any <br> <br> amount of frequent flyers points.<br> <br> <br> <br> Instead, each member is hand-picked and approved by the <br> <br> company's chief executive and chairman.<br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> Qantas<br> <br> <br> <br> my web-site; ช่อดอกไม้จัดเอง <br> <br> - https://flexhaja.com/bbs/board.php?bo_table=free&wr_id=287318