Attorney-General Vickie Chapman charged us $19.95 to watch hotel room movie — but has repaid it
ATTORNEY-General Vickie Chapman has paid back $20 she initially slugged taxpayers to watch a movie in a Perth hotel room, part of almost $250,000 spent by Government ministers since the state election. Interactive tracker inside reveals pollies’ wealth, gifts, perks.
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ATTORNEY-General Vickie Chapman has paid back $20 she initially slugged taxpayers to watch a movie in a Perth hotel room, part of almost $250,000 spent by Government ministers since the state election.
Ms Chapman in June charged taxpayers $19.95 to watch a movie at Perth’s Parmelia Hilton Hotel, while attending a meeting of state and territory attorneys-general.
She said she could not recall what the movie was, telling The Advertiser when questioned last week that it was “obviously not very good”.
But Ms Chapman on Tuesday apologised for charging the payment to taxpayers, saying it was an “inadvertent error”.
“Upon finding out about this on Friday last week, I organised repayment and I understand that payment has now occurred,” she said.
The Hilton would not provide details of what in-room movies it offered in June.
Flinders University politics expert Rob Manwaring said it did not pass the pub test for taxpayers to pay for Ms Chapman to watch a movie.
“That doesn’t strike me as a legitimate expense that taxpayers would expect,” he said.
Dr Manwaring said the public should expect MPs to travel as part of their work, but expenses should be confined to accommodation, travel and meals.
Labor government accountability spokesman Tom Koutsantonis welcomed Ms Chapman paying back the bill but said she should never have charged taxpayers in the first place.
“If should not take a media inquiry for the state’s first law officer on a salary of $350,000 to decide that she shouldn’t have charged taxpayers to watch a movie,” he said.
The 14 State Government ministers have racked up an expenses bill of $249,000 since March’s state election.
Premier Steven Marshall has the biggest expenses bill of $79,000 — punctuated by trips to China and the UK.
Primary Industries Minister Tim Whetstone has spent the second most, with more than two-thirds of his $45,000 bill spent on an expensive trip to the US.
His return business class flights cost $14,769 and he also spent $229 on Apple headphones.
Industry and Skills Minister David Pisoni’s expenses bill included a $3500 return flight to Perth to attend a Council of Australian Governments meeting.
Education Minister John Gardner has the smallest expense bill, charging taxpayers just $226 between March and August.
Another Flinders University professor — governance expert Adam Graycar — said the public should expect ministers to always fly business class on international flights, and on a large number of domestic trips.
“These people work hard and they’ll often be working as soon as they’re off the plane,” he said.
“And if you’re working hard you’ve got to stay at a decent hotel. You don’t want to stay in a rat hole.”