Barnaby Joyce, Vikki Campion cleared of breaching travel allowance rules

Audit finds ‘substantial change’ in pattern of Barnaby Joyce’s travel last year, but clears former Deputy PM of breaching rules.

Vikki Campion and Barnaby Joyce speak during their interview with Channel Seven’s Sunday Night. Photo: Channel 7

There was a “substantial change” in the pattern of Barnaby Joyce’s travel to Canberra last year when he claimed for 58 nights of travel allowance on non-sitting weeks compared with just 12 nights in 2016 and 2015, an audit has found.

The independent Parliamentary Expenses Authority has cleared both Mr Joyce and his partner Vikki Campion, who was once a staff member in his and other National Party MP offices, from breaching the travel rules because it has accepted their explanations for abnormal travel patterns.

Mr Joyce told the auditor that he spent so much time in Canberra — where Ms Campion lived — because he had an “immense workload” and a “range of portfolio responsibilities” and there was a “presumed cabinet reshuffle.”

“IPEA verified those factors and is satisfied they contributed to the increased travel pattern of Mr Joyce,” the report, released this afternoon, says.

“IPEA can confirm that for each trip in question, official business did occur.”

The report notes, however, that such assessments can be “subjective.”

The audit also focused on a trip to Canberra from the Sunshine Coast on January 5 last year when Mr Joyce left a family holiday and flew by special purpose aircraft to Canberra. The next day, instead of flying back to the holiday, Mr Joyce hired a car and drove to Tamworth via Cowra and then on to Maroochydoore in Queensland.

Mr Joyce said he repaid $779.54 to the Department of Finance because he was only entitled to return to his home base, in Tamworth, and not the family holiday.

Mr Joyce’s partner and mother of his newborn son, Vicki Campion, was also cleared of breaching travel rules and was actually repaid $978.36 on April 5, after the audit began, because the IPEA never received a motor vehicle travel claim she said she submitted last year.