Pridať nové hodnotenie

Joe Aston got the kind of book launch every first time <br> <br> author dreams of - massive amounts of free publicity online, in newspapers and on TV and radio. <br> <br> <br> <br> And it was all thanks to Anthony Albanese's ill-informed attack on Aston over what was written in his book, The Chairman's Lounge <br> <br> - The Inside Story of how Qantas sold us out.<br> <br> <br> <br> Despite the resultant terrible publicity - which has led to him being called 'upgrade Albo' - and <br> <br> calls for an inquiry, Aston told Daily Mail Australia his book <br> <br> is 'not a hit job on Anthony Albanese'.<br> <br> <br> <br> Aston insisted he's 'not trying to get a scalp', but reiterated that the Prime Minister 'had a direct <br> <br> line to Alan Joyce'.<br> <br> <br> <br> The book claims Mr Albanese got 22 upgrades from economy on Qantas flights by personally <br> <br> requesting them from the airline's then CEO Mr Joyce - which the Prime <br> <br> Minister has categorically denied.<br> <br> <br> <br> According to unnamed Qantas 'insiders', 11 of <br> <br> the 22 flights Mr Albanese got upgrades for were 'privately funded' and included overseas trips to Rome, London, Los Angeles and Honolulu. <br> <br> <br> <br> But instead of addressing the claim, Mr Albanese chose to shoot the messenger <br> <br> and, in turn, shot himself in the foot. <br> <br> <br> <br> He said Aston was using the accusations to sell books <br> <br> and said he was hiding his employment history. <br> <br> <br> <br> 'I don't see declarations that he's a former Liberal Party <br> <br> staffer… I don't see declarations he's a former Qantas employee,' the Prime <br> <br> Minister said. <br> <br> <br> <br> But before the book even gets to the contents page there is a photo <br> <br> of Aston that refers to him as the then-Qantas corporate communications senior adviser. <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> Joe Aston (pictured) got the kind of book launch every first time author dreams of - massive amounts of <br> <br> free publicity online, in newspapers and on TV and radio<br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> Anthony Albanese (right) is pictured with his fiance Jodie Haydon (left) and then Qantas CEO Alan Joyce <br> <br> on March 31, 2023 in Sydney, Australia<br> <br> <br> <br> And the first chapter of the book reveals that he worked for then-Liberal MP Bruce Baird, who held the southern Sydney seat of Cook before Scott Morrison. <br> <br> <br> <br> 'My professional history is not a secret or not disclosed, it's <br> <br> in the first line of the first page of the book,' Aston said on Tuesday night, <br> <br> just before his book launch. <br> <br> <br> <br> Though he was grateful for the free publicity Mr Albanese's response gave the book, Aston was still 'staggered' at the <br> <br> untrue claims about him the Prime Minister made. <br> <br> <br> <br> 'He's under enormous pressure and I know, I've seen this many times <br> <br> with public figures and leaders who struggle to see their own part <br> <br> in it, the terrible circumstances that they create,' he said.<br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> Read More<br> <br> <br> <br> Extravagant Qantas perk Anthony Albanese FAILED to declare is revealed...<br> <br> <br> <br> after two days of denials<br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> Asked if Mr Albanese had been poorly advised in his attack,<br> <br> Aston, who is a former Australian Financial Review columnist, wonders if the Prime Minister 'even listens to <br> <br> advice at this point'.<br> <br> <br> <br> 'All he's doing is talking around the issue and he's blaming me and he's blaming other MP's for also taking upgrades (on Qantas <br> <br> flights).<br> <br> <br> <br> 'He's avoiding the only thing that he can't talk about, which <br> <br> is, did you ask Qantas for confirmed upgrades on your <br> <br> private holidays when you were the Transport Minister?<br> <br> The answer is "yes" and he's desperately trying to avoid saying it.'<br> <br> <br> <br> Smelling blood, Opposition leader Peter Dutton said the Prime Minister should refer himself to the anti-corruption commission over <br> <br> the flight upgrades.<br> <br> <br> <br> Coming on top of Mr Albanese's tone deaf purchase of a $4.3million clifftop mansion while so <br> <br> many people are struggling to pay their mortgage or rent, the latest blow to his credibility has led to <br> <br> calls for him to resign.<br> <br> <br> <br> Aston refuses to be drawn on this, though. <br> <br> <br> <br> 'I never expected this (part of the book) to even this <br> <br> part to get this far. I really am shocked at how it's blown up.<br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> Prime Minister Anthony Albanese is pictured with the then Qantas CEO Alan Joyce<br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> Anthony Albanese is pictured on August 14, 2023 as Qantas unveiled its <br> <br> Yes23 livery in support of a Yes vote in the Indigenous Voice to <br> <br> Parliament referendum <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> Among the movers and shakers at Joe Aston's book <br> <br> launch in the ritzy Hemmesphere club in Sydney was Tabcorp <br> <br> director David Gallop (pictured)<br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> Paul Barry (pictured in blue shirt), the host of the ABC's Media Watch show, was also at the launch<br> <br> <br> <br> 'So to the extent that it has, I would say ...<br> <br> <br> <br> anyone who reads the book will learn that this book is not a hit job on Anthony Albanese.<br> <br> This book is about Qantas. <br> <br> <br> <br> 'Anthony Albanese is an example of how Qantas influences politicians on both sides <br> <br> of the aisle, Labor, Liberal, National, you name it.<br> <br> <br> <br> They've been doing it for more than a generation.<br> <br> <br> <br> 'They're the best influence peddler in Australia.<br> <br> I'm not here trying to get a scalp. That's not what this book is about and it never was.'<br> <br> <br> <br> But the conversation Daily Mail Australia had with Aston mirrors the conversations being had across Australia <br> <br> and eventually winds up back on Mr Albanese. <br> <br> <br> <br> 'Even I've underestimated how fed up the public is with <br> <br> the freebie mindset of politicians,' he said.<br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> Guests at Joe Aston's book launch on Tuesday night are pictured pointing <br> <br> for emphasis or to someone they recognise<br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> There was no shortage of free alcohol (pictured) available at the launch of Joe Aston's <br> <br> book <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> Joe Aston is pictured in the exclusive Hemmesphere club in Sydney,<br> <br> where his book The Chairman's Lounge was launched<br> <br> <br> <br> 'And unfortunately for Albanese, he's been in politics a long time and <br> <br> that kind of behaviour is quite normalised to him, is what I've seen. <br> <br> <br> <br> 'I mean, he loves the free concert tickets and sitting at the front row of the Australian Open Tennis. <br> <br> <br> <br> 'I went to the Australian Open Tennis as a journalist almost every year <br> <br> for 12 years and he was the only Prime Minister (I saw there).<br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> 'Those tickets are worth thousands of dollars to sit in the front row of the International <br> <br> Grand Slam. He's the first Prime Minister who I've ever <br> <br> seen do that.<br> <br> <br> <br> 'That to me is a sign that he doesn't quite get what it <br> <br> looks like to others when he's on the gravy train. And I <br> <br> think (the claims in the book are) just another example of <br> <br> that.'<br> <br> <br> <br> In Australian politics it's regular practise for an MP's travel to be booked in economy, then someone in their office phones the airline and asks if their flight <br> <br> can be upgraded. <br> <br> <br> <br> The difference with the Prime Minister is that 'he had a very direct line to Alan Joyce,' Aston said.<br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> 'The other thing is there's a difference between an upgrade where it's in the booking and if the seat's empty when the flight closes, <br> <br> you'll get upgraded.<br> <br> <br> <br> 'This is different. This is a confirmed upgrade where the <br> <br> ticket is converted and you are guaranteed. You're not going to the airport crossing your fingers <br> <br> going "Geez, I hope there is a spare seat".<br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> 'You're guaranteed. You turn up knowing you're getting <br> <br> a seat and the only person at Qantas who can issue those types of upgrades <br> <br> is the CEO. No other executive can do that.<br> <br> <br> <br> 'So it is beyond question that Alan joints authorised these upgrades (for Anthony Albanese).'<br> <br> <br> <br> Aston enjoyed many upgrades to the pointy end of planes during his time as a travel journalist, and understands the attraction for politicians <br> <br> to get up there. <br> <br> <br> <br> 'These things are tempting and it's human nature too.<br> <br> Once you've experienced the front of the plane, it's very hard to go back.<br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> 'For politicians, they run around with all these staff and they've got chauffeured <br> <br> cars and they fly in business, but they don't get paid <br> <br> like CEOs ...<br> <br> <br> <br> 'They're not in a situation where they can afford to go flying <br> <br> around in the front of the plane on personal travel. <br> <br> <br> <br> 'A normal person would say "Therefore I won't (fly business class). But (for politicians) it's a culture of entitlement.'<br> <br> <br> <br> Aston is careful to point out that most people would say politicians are 'very well paid compared to the average worker'.<br> <br> <br> <br> But that doesn't stop some MPs from desperately seeking a free ride, whether it's a flight upgrade, concert tickets or the executive box at sporting events. <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> Late on Wednesday night, a spokeswoman Mr Albanese said 'The Prime Minister did not ever call Alan Joyce seeking an upgrade'.<br> <br> <br> <br> 'All travel has been appropriately declared and is a matter of public record.'<br> <br> <br> <br> Daily Mail Australia has contacted Qantas for comment.  <br> <br> <br> <br> The Chairman's Lounge - The Inside Story of how Qantas sold us out, by Joe Aston, is available now in bookshops and from online retailers<br> <br> <br> <br> WHAT IS THE QANTAS CHAIRMAN'S LOUNGE?<br> <br> <br> <br> The Qantas Chairman's Lounge is an invitation-only club approved by the company chairman, with the guest list a closely-guarded secret.<br> <br> <br> <br> It has been dubbed 'the most exclusive club in the country' and comes with a distinct black card.<br> <br> <br> <br> Members include senior-ranking MPs such as ministers, state premiers and the Prime Minister, leaders of major unions and sporting groups, Qantas ambassadors, selected A-list celebrities, major corporate figures and high-profile media personalities.<br> <br> <br> <br> The clubs can be found in Sydney, Melbourne, Canberra, Brisbane, Perth and Adelaide airports but are not signposted - you have to know where to look.<br> <br> <br> <br> Inside you will find expensive wood and brass furnishings, wool carpet and marble flooring, all bathed in natural light. <br> <br> <br> <br> Members enjoy fine à la carte dining with a complimentary premium array of beers, spirits and Australian wines. Wine bottles are often given as departing gifts.<br> <br> <br> <br> Facilities may also include spas, showers and an assortment of books and magazines.<br> <br> <br> <br> Members may bring in two guests at a time. <br> <br> <br> <br> Lounge attendants personally alert you when your flight is ready to board, and your personal preferences are logged for each flight. <br> <br> <br> <br> Membership also entitles you to first-class facilities at Qantas partner airlines.<br> <br> <br> <br> Source: Executive Traveller<br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> Anthony Albanese<br> <br> <br> <br> my web blog ... จัดดอกไม้งานศพ - https://bogazicitente.com/219033
Hodnotenie: 
3
1 + 17 =