Eye-watering $81k travel bill clocked up by Opposition MP

Taxpayers were billed $8300 for a jetsetting MP to charter a plane from her electorate to Rockhampton as part of an eye-watering $81,000 travel bill paid for by Queenslanders.

LNP Member for Warrego Ann Leahy

Taxpayers were billed $8300 for jetsetting MP Ann Leahy to charter a plane from her Roma electorate to Rockhampton as part of an eye-watering travel bill paid for by Queenslanders over 12 months.

Ms Leahy’s Warrego electorate is the LNP’s safest and Queensland’s third largest, stretching from Dalby to the South Australian border.

Taxpayers reimbursed Ms Leahy $63,040 in airfares for private and charter flights in the 12 months to June 30, according to her parliamentary travel diary.

She also claimed $25,238 for commercial flights between Brisbane and Roma.

On June 19 Ms Leahy spent $8300 – the equivalent of a Qantas business class flight to London – on a two-night trip to Rockhampton, Yeppoon and Laidley.

Commercial flights between Roma and Brisbane are as low as $216 each way on Rex, according to the airline’s website.

A flight from Brisbane to Rockhampton is advertised at $149 each way with Virgin Australia.

The LNP’s local government spokeswoman, who has a “keen interest in aviation” charged taxpayers $5000 to fly to Mundagi on August 5 to celebrate 125 years of the Mungindi Show Society.

A trip in a car would have taken three hours and 20 minutes from Roma.

On April 12 Ms Leahy billed Queenslanders $7995 to fly 700km to Dalby and Noorama for just one night.

A charter flight to Maroochydore for one night on July 16, 2023 also cost taxpayers $6395.

There is no suggestion Ms Leahy broke parliamentary rules.

An LNP spokeswoman said commercial flights were always the first choice for travel.

“Most of the Warrego electorate is not accessible by commercial flights, including to Dalby, Mungindi, Noorama or Chinchilla,” she said.

“This community, like any other in Queensland, deserves representation and the chance to meet with the local MP, which is why travel is approved by the Clerk of Parliament. 

“For the role of shadow minister for local government, travel is also required to remote parts of Queensland, include to Indigenous communities only accessible by air.”

Clerk of the Parliament Neil Laurie said the flight costs were commercial charters.

He indicated the costs were higher because the charter company was not based in Ms Leahy’s electorate.

Ms Leahy’s total travel allocation, including car hire, taxis and a $330 daily travel allowance, cost taxpayers $81,294.

Originally published as Eye-watering $81k travel bill clocked up by Opposition MP