Senate brings Qantas and Albanese back to Earth

Claims of crony capitalism made against Anthony Albanese and Qantas by Nationals senator Bridget McKenzie might be an exaggeration. But after two days of public hearings in Canberra, neither the Albanese government nor Qantas have done anything to lessen the perception of a collusive relationship that forces air travellers to put up with substandard service from both. The decision by former Qantas chief executive Alan Joyce and Transport Minister Catherine King to make themselves unavailable due to vacation smacks of the same smug arrogance that has left ordinary travellers stranded. Qantas chairman Richard Goyder, who did appear before the Senate inquiry on Wednesday, has his own issues of competence to deal with but they are properly for shareholders, not government.

The crux of what must be fleshed out in the Senate inquiry is whether the Albanese government has been too cosy with Qantas, to the detriment of the flying public. The actions of the Prime Minister and Ms King have only fed suspicions. Mr Albanese has been too coy about his dealings with Mr Joyce. Beyond complaints of poor service, price gouging and illegal workplace actions at Qantas, the central issue for government is why did Ms King reject a bid by Qatar Airways to increase its number of flights to Australia. The lack of answers leads to conclusions that are highly unflattering to Mr Albanese and Ms King. The committee has taken the extraordinary step of asking Ms King to appear before it after senior transport bureaucrats were gagged from answering critical questions about whether Qantas had been a factor in the decision to block Qatar. It is now known that Ms King was handed a brief from the Transport and Infrastructure Department about the Qatari application in January but did not make a decision until July.

Senator McKenzie said evidence to the inquiry suggested Ms King was willing to approve the additional flights in January but “something changed” and the matter sat on her desk for six months with no further consultations until a decision was made to reject it. Virgin boss Jayne Hrdlicka told the Senate hearings on Wednesday that the government attitude towards additional Qatari flights had changed after Mr Joyce made his unhappiness over the foreign airline’s push clear to Labor. Attempts on Thursday by public service officials to explain the decision were like something from a script of Yes Minister. “That was a range, but not the definitive full set of factors she took into account. Ultimately, it is a decision for the minister,” said Transport Group deputy secretary Marisa Purvis-Smith. Ms King has effectively silenced the public service and is unlikely to take up the Senate committee request that she appear.

Voters can make up their own minds. But what is clear as a result of the Senate inquiry so far is that competitive forces are severely lacking in Australia’s aviation sector, to the benefit of Qantas and detriment of the public. The findings of an investigation by former Productivity Commission chair Peter Harris into the hoarding of landing slots at Sydney Airport has not been released, despite having been finished for two years. The Albanese government took the advice of Qantas to stop regular airline monitoring reports by the Australian Competition & Consumer Commission, despite other airlines wanting them to continue. As a private concern, Qantas is expected to act in its best commercial interests but government is there to protect the public. The airline clearly has overstepped on many fronts and must explain itself to customers and shareholders. The government, however, has little excuse for acting like it was a member of team Qantas. The Albanese government must explain itself and work harder to promote competition to lower the cost of air travel and set things right.