Premier Daniel Andrews blows $280k of taxpayers’ money promoting himself on Facebook

UPDATE: THE Premier is putting his ego first and the people of Victoria second with his $280k spend of taxpayer money on Facebook, the Opposition says. Experts say it is an effective way of getting his message across.

Premier Daniel Andrews wants voters to "like" him on Facebook and has spent hundreds and thousands of dollars of your money enticing Victorians to do so. Picture digitally altered

PREMIER Daniel Andrews’ $280k spend of taxpayer money on Facebook is an effective way of getting his message across, communications experts say.

The Herald Sun revealed today at least $281,469 has been spent simply on promoting the Premier’s Facebook page.

The two-year advertising bill does not include staffing costs to run the page or to produce the flashy videos of Labor projects often shared.

Millions have seen Facebook posts that are “sponsored” by the Premier’s department, which also pays to “boost” free posts so they are seen by a wider audience.

Critics say the “vain Premier” is spending from the public purse to boost his own political profile, slamming the Facebook page as a taxpayer-funded advertisement for Labor’s re-election campaign.

Opposition Leader Matthew Guy said the Premier’s Department was being used as a Labor campaign slush fund.

“Three years in and Daniel Andrews’ priority is buying Facebook friends for his vanity project rather than solving chronic congestion. This Premier puts his ego first and people second,” Mr Guy said.

One of Premier Daniel Andrews’ taxpayer-funded Facebook posts.

“Daniel Andrews needs to stop making the rules up as he goes to suit Labor, close this loophole, or introduce strict and clear guidelines.”

But the government says it has saved $20 million on TV ads since taking office in 2014, and the Facebook page is just a minor channel for government communication.

Harry Corsham director of Town Square communications said Mr Andrews is much better off spending money on Facebook than television.

“I’d rather see Daniel Andrews spending that money on Facebook than putting out some of those messages on his Facebook message through TV advertising,” he said.

“That is a pretty effective way to be getting hold of a whole bunch of people and telling them what you want to say.”

This year, Mr Andrews became the most “liked” Australian politician on Facebook, with more than 387,000 followers; Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull’s Facebook page has 372,646 “likes”.

Strict guidelines for government advertising that ban taxpayer-funded political ads on TV and in other mainstream media, do not apply to Facebook pages.

This year Daniel Andrews became the most “liked” Australian politician on Facebook.

Legislation before parliament would ban the promotion of unfunded projects on paid TV ads, but that also would not extend to the Facebook page or to other social media channels run out of the Office of the Premier.

The Premier has received high-praise for his DanielAndrewsMP Facebook page. Many posts have reached millions of Victorians.

But the department is being charged hundreds of dollars in advertising bills almost daily.

On one day in January this year, $977.88 was spent on pushing posts to entice Victorians to “like” his page “if you support our plan to introduce medicinal cannabis”.

Around the time of one free post, of Mr Andrews taking two asylum-seeker children to the zoo — which was viewed 1.8 million times — his Facebook ad spend was $1580.96.

This sponsored Facebook post cost taxpayers $977.88.

A $606.42 advertising bill was paid in September last year when Mr Andrews — or, more accurately, his staff — mocked up a version of a Drake album cover to push his Grand Final public holiday.

Mr Andrews was found out later at a press conference, after he failed to name any songs by the Canadian rapper.

PREMIER CAUGHT OUT BY AWKWARD DRAKE SOCIAL MEDIA POST

Premier Daniel Andrews was caught out by this awkward Drake Facebook post.

Ads have been designed to appeal to Facebook followers on the basis of age, and of geography, such as by promoting projects from the Budget to the marginal sandbelt seats in Melbourne’s southeast.

State Greens leader Greg Barber said the Premier was having a lend of the taxpayer — “spending their money to make you ‘like’ him.”

“That is the ultimate insult,’’ Mr Barber said.

“They made a big deal of their ban on taxpayer-funded political advertising, but then they left themselves a sneaky loophole so the Premier can spend as much as he wants through his Facebook account. Typical dodgy Labor.”

Another sponsored Facebook post from Premier Daniel Andrews.

A Facebook explanation of one of Premier Daniel Andrews’ sponsored posts.

But the government says it uses social media to communicate important information to Victorians.

A government spokeswoman said it had slashed taxpayer-funded advertising after the previous Liberal government spent millions of dollars advertising projects that it never built.

“Most Victorians use Facebook to access information — any government ignoring that is completely out of touch.”

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