Education Minister Jason Clare has admitted to requesting a free flight upgrade from Qantas for a personal trip from to Sydney to Singapore.
Clare confirmed he asked Qantas for an upgrade in 2019 after leaving hospital following surgery to remove a melanoma on his leg.
The trip was declared on his official register of interests, but Clare said he could not recollect who he spoke to about the upgrade.
“I remember picking up the phone and asking for a bit of assistance there, but I can’t remember all of the details,” he told Sky News.
According to Joe Aston’s book The Chairman’s Lounge, the PM had declared 22 free upgrades with some directly obtained through former chief executive Alan Joyce.
Clare jumped to the PM’s defence today, maintaining he acted in due diligence by combing more than a decade of his registered interests.
“He has gone out of his way to check and make sure that all of the questions that he answers are correct,” Clare said.
“You’ve got the choice there – that you make it up or you check. And that’s what Anthony has done.”
