SA Senator Lucy Gichuhi billed taxpayers $12,000 for five NSW trips, tells Kenyan TV $200,000 is ‘not a lot of money’

SA Senator Lucy Gichuhi has billed taxpayers more than $12,000 for five trips to Sydney for “electorate business” — as a Kenyan TV clip emerges of her saying her salary of $200,000 “not a lot” of money in Australia.

• Senator blames ‘error’ for billing family’s flights to taxpayers
• ‘Impressed’ Howard backs Gichuhi for Libs senate ticket
• Gichuhi retreats from her first press conference

SOUTH Australian Senator Lucy Gichuhi has billed taxpayers more than $12,000 for five trips to Sydney for “electorate business” despite being more than 1000km away from her Adelaide office.

The new Liberal recruit is under mounting pressure to explain her use of taxpayer-funded expenses — as it emerged that she recently described her $200,000 annual salary as “not a lot of money”.

She has now agreed to repay at least $2139 which she claimed to fly her family from Darwin to Adelaide for her birthday last October.

“It was an administrative error and I know how inappropriate it was,” Senator Gichuhi told ABC Radio Adelaide on Monday morning.

“It was an error and as soon as we got to know of it we fixed it.”

She said she was still waiting for the appropriate government department to raise an invoice so the money could be repaid.

A video clip of the senator appearing on a Kenyan TV program in January was shared on social media yesterday. It showed her being asked how much she was paid.

“Two hundred thousand Australian dollars … in a whole year that’s not a lot of money,” Senator Gichuhi responded.

Liberal Senator Lucy Gichuhi on Kenyan TV.

The mother of three jokingly told the show she had considered bringing over some Kenyan workers to help her, husband William and three children.

“There are no house girls, for your information,” she told the program host with a laugh.

“Without house girls it was such a challenge but I learned and learned very quickly.

“My husband was working so hard to adjust from that man attitude to help around the house.”

The senator was elected following a recount after the High Court booted Family First’s Bob Day.

The Kenyan-born lawyer was second on the Family First ticket in SA.

She faces a tough battle in an increasingly bitter Senate preselection contest that could see her pushed to an unwinnable position on the SA Liberal ticket.

Senator Gichuhi joined the Liberal Party in February after taking her seat as an independent because Family First had dissolved through a merger with the Australian Conservatives.

According to parliamentary travel records, Senator Gichuhi made one of the trips in late April last year — before she was sworn in — for two nights at cost of about $2500, which included return flights for a family member.

Liberals Senator Lucy Gichuhi is under fire over billing taxpayers for more than $12,000 for five trips to Sydney.

In August, Senator Gichuhi spent five nights in Sydney where she spoke at the National Australia Bank’s African Australian Inclusion Program, met former Prime Minister John Howard and met with community radio leaders. Taxpayers footed the $4400 bill which again included flights for a family member.

In November, Senator Gichuhi charged taxpayers more than $2000 for one night in Sydney, joined by her husband, to speak at the African Professionals in Australia Gala Dinner.

She claimed almost $4000 for two one-night trips to Sydney including one to appear on ABC’s Q&A program, which senators and MPs commonly charge back to the taxpayer.

The other was to attend an international event held by Christian radio station Hope 103.2 in November at the NSW Parliament, on the theme “healing a divided nation”.

Under entitlement rules, MPs and senators can claim travel for electorate duties if they were facilitating and participating in debate, discussion, a meeting, event or function or undertaking research relating to matters of importance or interest to constituents.

A spokesman for Senator Gichuhi said the office was confident that all of the travel was in line with the rules.

Last week, Senator Gichuhi began to circulate campaign material for Senate preselection with Liberal members. It included references from former prime minister Tony Abbott and conservative senators Eric Abetz and Mathias Cormann.

The move annoyed SA right-wingers who have been pushing for Adelaide City Councillor Alex Antic to claim a winnable spot on the party’s Senate ticket over Senator Gichuhi.