Tony Burke and his family took a trip to Uluru in 2012. The family flew business class. We hope they had a lovely time, because the airfares cost us, the taxpayers, more than $2000 a pop.
Burke says he met with members of a local community while he was there, in his capacity as environment minister. But it doesn’t matter — the facts speak for themselves that this was primarily a family holiday.
Philip Ruddock has claimed almost $20,000 in recent years for him and his family to travel to far north Queensland, where he reportedly owns an apartment in a beachfront complex.
On each trip, according to a report in The Australian today, Ruddock typically charged for two plane tickets from Sydney — at about $3500 for both — plus cars and traveling allowances.
Ruddock also says he travels north regularly on business, and has asked his staff to review his expenses to identify “any erroneous claims”. But again, the facts speak for themselves.
If the Bronwyn Bishop saga has highlighted anything it’s that we are regularly paying for our politicians’ family holidays. And lavish ones at that.
The average backbencher’s salary is $195,130 per annum. Committee chairs and ministers get more. The average Australian is on $76,752 a year — less than half what the most junior federal member earns.
Hey, politicians: pay for your own goddamn holidays. You can afford it.
Good for you Crikey, I am fed up with paying for jaunts for our MPs.When I read recently that Albanese received free tickets to the AFL final but spent $1000 of our money on hire cars I was disgsuted. He couldnt even hire his own car for sixtry dollars day or something. And how much does it cost Ruddock to fly from the South to Cairns? Is this business class or first class?
But what hope of changing something called an entitlement?
Fair play, but Crikey has on numerous occasions argued for increasing pollies’ salaries and campaign allowances to improve/increase the talent pool, and reduce the need for secret donations.
A little consistency wouldn’t go astray.
Greedy dicks.
Is that “average” salary the mean or the median? I suspect the former, and the latter would be more realistic.
I do not think that MPs should be paid more – what’s wrong with the median wage?
The constant claim that paying peanuts attracts only monkeys begs the question what the hell have we attracted in the current lot, vampire squids?