Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has been accused of directly requesting complimentary personal flight upgrades from the former chief executive officer of the national carrier Qantas.
In a new book, Australian journalist Joe Aston revealed that the present prime minister had called ex-CEO Alan Joyce several times and was upgraded on 22 flights between 2009 and 2019.
At a press conference on Tuesday, Albanese refused to say whether he had spoken to Joyce about personal upgrades but maintained he had adhered to the rules and had been “completely transparent” with his disclosures.
“No accusations are being made with any specifics about any of this, none,” he added.
The former federal transport minister Albanese also criticized Aston, a one-time opposition party staffer, for “trying to sell a book.”
Aston reportedly quotes Qantas insiders as saying that Albanese spoke to Joyce about his travel plans in his book, The Chairman’s Lounge: The Inside Story of How Qantas Sold Us Out.
Albanese said he did recall having two conversations with Joyce about flights that did not involve personal travel.
“Of the 22 flights, 10 of them were. [in 2013] Over one month, both Qantas and Virgin provided upgrades for flights paid for by the Australian Labor Party to ensure there was no cost to taxpayers for what was internal business.
“In my time in public life, I have acted with integrity, I have acted in a way that is entirely appropriate, and I have declared by the rules,” he said.
Though it is not uncommon for Australian politicians to receive free flight upgrades, they are supposed to declare such gifts.
Australia’s shadow transport minister, Senator Bridget McKenzie, has called for an inquiry to investigate the allegations.
“There are serious questions which only Mr Joyce and the Prime Minister can answer,” she told reporters.
