‘I will not’: Question Qantas boss Alan Joyce refused to answer at feisty inquiry

There was one topic Qantas boss Alan Joyce made clear he would not discuss as he faced intense questioning by senators on Monday.

Qantas boss Alan Joyce has been grilled by Australian senators over competition in the market, high airfares, cancellations, Covid travel credits and memberships handed out for the exclusive Qantas Chairman’s Lounge.

Mr Joyce, who will retire as Qantas Group CEO in November, appeared at a public hearing in Melbourne on Monday afternoon for a Senate inquiry into the cost of living after being issued a summons to appear.

Senators on the select committee did not hold back, with Mr Joyce at one point telling Labor senator Tony Sheldon, a former Transport Workers Union national secretary, he was “getting a bit worked up”.

Mr Joyce asked senators to stop constantly interrupting him and allow him to answer their questions, but senators said they were stopping him because he was not directly answering what they had asked.

Qantas CEO Alan Joyce has faced an inquiry into the cost of living after the airline posted a $2.5 billion underlying profit before tax last week. Picture NCA NewsWire / Aaron Francis

The questioning went for over 1 and half hours – 34 minutes over the scheduled time. It was stated that Mr Joyce had a flight to catch, to which one senator quipped it would be delayed anyway.

Jetstar CEO Stephanie Tully and Qantas’ group executive for corporate affairs Andrew McGinnes also appeared before the committee.

The hearing comes after the Qantas Group posted a statutory profit after tax of $1.74 billion – the first full-year statutory profit since 2019 – on Thursday.

‘I will not’: Question Alan Joyce refused to answer

While Mr Joyce was repeatedly accused of not directly answering questions and he claimed he was not being given the opportunity, the outgoing CEO was very clear in refusing to answer questions about his relationship with Prime Minister Anthony Albanese.

Mr Joyce would not answer questions about conversations he had with Prime Minister Anthony Albanese. Picture: NCA Newswire / Gaye Gerard

Greens senator Penny Allman-Payne, who is also deputy chair of the select committee, asked Mr Joyce if he had discussed Qatar’s proposal last October to increase its flight to Australia with Mr Albanese or Transport Minister Catherine King.

The Australian government denied Qatar Airways’ application – which Qantas made a submission opposing – to add 21 weekly flights to the 28 it already operates last month.

But Mr Joyce said he would never divulge a discussion he had with any Prime Minister.

“I’ve said any conversations I have with the Prime Minister or Minister, I never divulge,” he said.

“I’ve kept that for all seven Prime Ministers either way and I have no intent on changing my approach to divulging conversations that take place.”

He agreed to take a question about the dates he met with Mr Albanese or members of government on notice, which he must provide by September 18.

Mr Joyce said he would not reveal members of the invite-only Qantas Chairman’s Lounge. Picture NCA NewsWire / Aaron Francis

But questions on Mr Joyce’s relationship with the PM didn’t end there.

Ms Allman-Payne also asked Mr Joyce whether he had any conversations with Mr Albanese before deciding to grant his 23-year-old son access to Qantas’ invite-only Chairman’s Lounge.

“I’m not going to comment on Chairman’s club membership,” Mr Joyce said.

“I’ve got privacy issues where we will not comment on who’s in, who’s been offered it and why they’re there.

“So I will not be making any comment on that, confirming or denying it.”

Ms Allman-Payne followed with another question about whether Mr Joyce had given any family members of any other politicians a similar free membership to the Chairman’s Lounge, without divulging names.

Mr Joyce said sternly: “Again, I will not comment on the Chairman’s Lounge.

“I will not comment on who’s in or who isn’t in. There are privacy issues with that.”

Qantas’ Chairman's Lounge is ultra-exclusive and a number of senators on the committee admitted they were members. Picture: NCA NewsWire / Andrew Henshaw

As Ms Allman-Payne continued to press Mr Joyce, Nationals senator Matthew Canavan raised whether Mr Joyce was allowed to refuse to answer the question.

“There is significant powers of the Senate to obtain information and documentation and I’m just not quite sure that this falls into a category for that information not to be provided,” he said.

Committee chair Liberal senator Jane Hume agreed, while acknowledging the question “skirts the edges” of the terms of reference of the inquiry, which is about the cost of living.

She asked Mr Joyce to come back to the committee on notice with the grounds on which he refuses to answer the questions.

Ms Hume also reminded senators that if they wanted to ask about the Chairman’s Lounge, they should declare if they were a member.

“As the chair, I would declare my membership of the lounge. Thank you very much to Qantas on bestowing that upon senators when they are elected to parliament,” Ms Hume said.

Ms Allman-Payne and Mr Canavan both confirmed their memberships.

Senator Jane Hume, who is chair of the select committee, thanked Qantas for her own and other senators’ memberships to the exclusive club. Picture: NCA NewsWire / Aaron Francis

Australian Senate summonsed Alan Joyce

Mr Joyce fronts the inquiry after the Australian Senate issued him a summons to appear.

Last Wednesday, just a day before Qantas posted its full-year results, Labor senator Tony Sheldon claimed Mr Joyce resisted a request to answer questions before the Senate select committee and had therefore been summonsed.

A Qantas spokesperson said Mr Joyce was invited to attend a cost-of-living Senate committee hearing and to nominate relevant executives, “which we did”.

According to the airline, the Committee’s written request and instruction was that it is “at the discretion of Qantas to identify the witnesses that would be most appropriate to appear”.

“Despite no other company CEO being required to attend, the committee subsequently insisted that Qantas CEO Alan Joyce appear, which he will do,” the spokesperson said.

Mr Joyce with chief financial officer Vanessa Hudson, who will take over as CEO in November. Picture: NCA Newswire / Gaye Gerard

Qantas’ full year results reveal major profit

The hearing on Monday comes after Qantas posted an underlying profit before tax of $2.47 billion for the financial year last Thursday.

It had a statutory profit after tax of $1.74 billion. Its net debt also declined to $2.89 billion.

Qantas said its return to profit comes after three years and $7 billion of cumulative statutory losses.

The company said underpinning the profit was completion of its $1 billion recovery program (launched in the first year of those losses), a 132 per cent increase in flying compared with FY22 and strong travel demand driving significantly higher revenue.

Mr Joyce, who will retire as CEO in November after extending his time to see the business through the pandemic, described the company’s financial position as the “strongest it’s ever been”.