‘Glass jaw’: Dutton skips usual morning show slot amid private plane cash splash findings

Opposition leader Peter Dutton has been criticised after he skipped his usual morning show appearance amid revelations around his travel habits.

Bill Shorten has accused Peter Dutton of having a “glass jaw” after the Opposition Leader skipped his usual morning show appearance amid revelations he billed taxpayers hundreds of thousands for private flights.

The government and opposition have been exchanging fiery verbal barbs all week after Prime Minister Anthony Albanese was accused of directly soliciting flight upgrades from ex-Qantas boss Alan Joyce.

The Prime Minister has flatly denied the claims, and in a typically Canberran plot twist, the heightened scrutiny on parliament’s occupants has unearthed questionable travel choices among those shouting the loudest.

Expenses data, first reported by The Daily Telegraph, showed Mr Dutton opted for $200,000 for chartered flights in six months despite having cheaper viable options.

Opposition Leader Peter Dutton missed his usual morning show appearance on Friday amid revelations he billed taxpayers hundreds of thousands for private flights. Picture: NewsWire / Damian Shaw

Federal Minister Bill Shorten says Mr Dutton has a ‘glass jaw’. Picture: NewsWire / Martin Ollman

The data showed he booked three individual flights over a 48-hour period in February 2023 at a cost of $32,000 each.

Mr Shorten, who normally faces off with Mr Dutton on Friday mornings, told The Today Show that the Coalition had “wasted a week of the nation’s life”.

“All they’ve done is try and throw mud, and most of it’s ended up on their own face,” the federal minister said.

“Where is Peter Dutton? I mean, he he’s famously got a glass jaw.

“Now we know he lives in a glass house.”

Mr Shorten added that he thought “we need to get back to cost of living.”

NewsWire has contacted Mr Dutton’s office for comment on his taxpayer-charged private flights.

Mr Shorten appeared on the morning show alongside Mr Dutton’s surrogate, Senator Bridget McKenzie.

Senator McKenzie, who has led the Coalition’s charge against Mr Albanese, confirmed earlier this week she was probing her own travel history amid claims she has not disclosed upgrades.

Coalition senator Bridget McKenzie says she does not ‘like to hold others to a standard I’m not prepared to subject to myself.’ Picture: NewsWire / Martin Ollman

In her appearance opposite Mr Shorten, she refused to clarify if she had ever solicited an upgrade, but conceded she “was wrong earlier this week to be so emphatic.”

“I do not have a hotline to request upgrades,” Senator McKenzie said.

“I did end up having an upgrade that I had declared, but it really highlighted for me the need to check the records accurately and to go to the source, which is why I’ve written to three airlines to get the full log of upgrades and flights since becoming a senator in 2017.”

She said she did not “like to hold others to a standard I’m not prepared to subject to myself” and that she would “be obviously updating declarations” as “MPs are doing that right now across the board on both sides.”