Anthony Albanese may have breached the ministerial code of conduct by allegedly asking former Qantas chief executive Alan Joyce for improvements during his tenure as minister.
A new book by former Australian Financial Review columnist Joe Aston reveals Albanese accepted free flight upgrades worth tens of thousands of dollars while he was transport minister or shadow transport minister.
According to unnamed Qantas sources, 11 of the 22 flights for which Albanese received upgrades were “privately funded” and included overseas trips to Rome, London, Los Angeles and Honolulu, some of them for holidays.
The book also alleges that Albanese contacted Joyce directly while carrying out his various parliamentary jobs to request special improvements for himself or his family.
Albanese served as Transport Minister from December 2007 to September 2013 under Prime Ministers Kevin Rudd and Julia Gillard.
The ministerial ethics rules, which prohibit ministers from seeking or encouraging gifts of any kind for their personal benefit, were published by Mr Rudd in December 2007.
Gillard subsequently adopted the code in September 2010, meaning Albanese was subject to its rules as Transport Minister.
The code describes the expected conduct of ministers regarding gifts:
“Therefore, ministers, in their official capacity, may accept customary official gifts, hospitality, tokens of gratitude and similar formal gestures in accordance with relevant guidelines,” it said.
‘But they should not seek or encourage any type of donation in a personal capacity.
“Ministers must also comply with the requirements of Parliament and the Prime Minister in relation to the declaration of donations.”
A new book claims that when Albanese was shadow transport and transport minister he contacted Qantas chief executive Alan Joyce to arrange his personal trip (pictured Albanese (left) with Alan Joyce ).
Ministerial ethics rules dictate that a minister cannot “seek or encourage any kind of gift in a personal capacity” (pictured, Anthony Albanese, right, Alan Joyce centre, with the Prime Minister’s fiancée Jodie Haydon).
At a press conference in Newcastle on Tuesday, Albanese claimed Aston was using the allegations to sell books and accused him of hiding his connection to the Liberal Party.
“I just want to point out that the person who is trying to sell a book, and it’s fair…” Mr. Albanese said.
‘I see no statements that he is a former Liberal Party staffer for several senior members of the Liberal Party, including Joe Hockey and Bruce Baird.
“I don’t see any statements in June – just a few months ago he and John Howard were invited to a Liberal Party fundraiser in the Wentworth electorate.”
Aston responded on social media, noting that he wrote about his work with Baird in the opening chapter of The Chairman’s Lounge.
“It is revealed in the first line of the first page of the book and has never been a secret,” Mr Aston wrote.
“This is beyond desperate on the part of the prime minister.”
Albanese also took aim at opposition leader Peter Dutton.
“My flights were commercial with Qantas, Virgin or Emirates,” Albanese said.
‘They were all declared appropriately. I didn’t have to declare any flights on private planes owned by billionaires like Gina Rinehart because I wasn’t involved in it, simple as that.
“It is up to Mr Dutton to explain how these flights to private groups were organised.”
In June, Dutton traveled on Mrs Rinehart’s private jet to an event in the New South Wales town of Tamworth.
However, Albanese appears to have forgotten about a private helicopter trip in 2023 he took with Victorian Premier Dan Andrews.
Last January, Albanese flew on Lindsay Fox’s private helicopter to a five-hour barbecue with the shipping mogul and Andrews at the billionaire’s coastal mansion in Victoria.
Dutton was “obsessed” with attacking him personally, Albanese claimed.
“Peter Dutton appears to be obsessed with attacking me and my family,” Albanese said.
“My obsession is helping Australians every day.”
Albanese also suggested that some MPs were hiding their possessions in trusts.
“I don’t have a trust, I have never had shares in any company,” he said.
“It is for others to say why they have trusts, why we do not know what they own or what they invest in. I have not done that, I have acted with integrity.”
The Prime Minister also denied frequently asking Joyce for improvements.
“The only conversations I remember with Alan Joyce certainly weren’t over calls – we talked about the first flight from Australia to Dubai on the A380,” he said.
Opposition transport spokesperson Bridget McKenzie believes Albanese needs to tell the Australian public whether this is true or not (pictured in the book making the claims).
“I have declared everything in accordance with all the rules and I note that there are others who, to my knowledge, have not necessarily declared all the flights they have taken.”
Albanese said the allegations lacked specific details.
“If there are any suggestions to be made, let them be made specifically and I will respond to them,” he said.
Opposition transport spokeswoman Bridget McKenzie said Albanese must tell Australians if he tried to secure improvements for himself and his family while he was transport minister.
‘This is for the Prime Minister to assure the Australian public. This is a question of trust. “It is also a question of ministerial integrity,” he said.
‘The allegations in Joe Aston’s book are that he actively requested improvements for himself and his family members.
‘Is it true or not? So far, despite two press conferences, we don’t have an answer to that question.’