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  ร้านดอกไม้เปิด 24 ชั่วโมง Posted 27.11.2024 in 16:05

  Anthony Albanese has tried to claim his relationship with
  Alan Joyce was a strictly professional one between a Prime Minister and
  a corporate titan, as he battles claims the Qantas boss was his 'personal travel agent' for free flights and upgrades.
  
  
  However that characterization of the relationship was at
  odds with that made by Mr Joyce, who said he was 'good mates' with Mr Albanese
  and had been 'for years'.
  
  In the wake of the explosive claims that the Prime Minister had
  Mr Joyce arrange free tickets and upgrades, Mr Albanese distanced himself from the Qantas chief.
  
  
  When asked about about their relationship on Sunday Mr Albanese implied it
  was purely in a professional capacity, having been Transport Minister
  and shadow transport spokesperson before becoming Prime Minister. 
  
  'He (Joyce) was the CEO of the national airline ... I
  had the same relationship with him that I have with John Borghetti as the CEO of Virgin,' Mr Albanese
  said.
  
  That assessment was at odds with the many photos showing Mr Albanese and Mr
  Joyce apparently greatly enjoying each other's company. 
  
  Mr Albanese and Mr Joyce were pictured in high spirits
  on the red carpet at the Qantas 100th Gala Dinner in March last year.
  
  
  In photos from the event, Mr Joyce proudly walks the
  red carpet with one arm around the prime minister and the other around Mr Albanese's partner,
  Jodie Haydon.
  
  Just five months later, in August, a smiling Mr Albanese attended Qantas's unveiling of it's special 'Yes
  23' emblazoned airplanes for the Voice referendum.
  
  
  
  
  Former Qantas CEO Alan Joyce jovially walked the red carpet
  with one arm around the prime minister and the other around his partner,
  Jodie Haydon for a special anniversary event last year
  
  Mr Joyce was seen touching Mr Albanese's arm, with the PM bursting
  into laughter.
  
  Even when Scott Morrison was PM,  Mr Joyce enjoyed
  an apparently close relationship with Mr Albanese as
  the pair stood close together at the launch of the Qantas' landmark
  Perth to London flight in March, 2018. 
  
  During a Senate hearing in September 2023,
  Mr Joyce said he had been 'friends for years' with Mr Albanese.
  
  
  Asked about why he gifted Mr Albanese's son Nathan a
  membership to the prestigious and exclusive Chairman's Lounge Mr Joyce
  refused to confirm or deny but talked up his relationship with the Prime Minister.
  
  
  'I've been good mates with Albo for some time,' Mr Joyce said. 
  
  However, the then Qantas CEO refused to say whether he lobbied the Prime Minister on the controversial decision to lock competitor Qatar Airways
  out of domestic routes.
  
  It has since emerged in a new book about Qantas, The Chairman's Lounge,
  by former Australian Financial Review columnist Joe Aston that Ms Haydon is also a Chairman's Lounge member. 
  
  
  
  
  Mr Albanese and Mr Joyce also appeared to greatly enjoying each
  other's company at  a Qantas event in August last year
  
  
  
  
  Read More
  
  Anthony Albanese fires up and launches a brutal personal attack on book author
  
  
  Reports have emerged in a new book Mr Albanese received 22
  upgrades from economy from Qantas and he would liaise personally with the former airline boss for them. 
  
  Aston also alleged Mr Albanese directly contacted Mr Joyce while in his
  various parliamentary jobs to ask for special upgrades for himself or
  his family.
  
  According to unnamed Qantas 'insiders' 11
  of the 22 flights Mr Albanese received upgrades for were 'privately funded' and included
  overseas trips to Rome, London, Los Angeles and Honolulu, with some
  being for holidays.
  
  Mr Albanese insisted on Tuesday that the
  London flights was for work purposes and all were 'declared in the
  appropriate way'.    
  
  Opposition Leader Peter Dutton has leapt on the
  accusations describing Mr Albanese as being the 'best friend'
  of Mr Joyce. 
  
  Mr Dutton told Sky News on Monday night it was 'strange' Mr
  Albanese had directly contacted Mr Joyce to request upgrades
  while holding a regulatory position in the transport sector.
  
  
  'If you're the Transport Minister and you're picking up the
  phone to one of the most important stakeholders in the portfolio asking for a free upgrade, then again, I think the Prime Minister
  would be able to answer those questions more effectively than anyone
  else because I'm not aware of anyone else having done it,' Mr Dutton said.
  
  
  
  
  
  It has since emerged that Ms Haydon also has membership of the Qantas Chairman's Lounge
  
  
  
  The Prime Minister denied frequently asking Mr Joyce for upgrades on Tuesday
  at press conference in the NSW city of Newcastle.
  
  
  'The only discussions that I can recall with Alan Joyce certainly were not
  discussed through calls - we discussed the first flight from Australia
  to Dubai on the A380,' he said.
  
  'I've declared everything in accordance with all of the rules.'
  
  Aston was asked on Monday night by ABC interviewer Sarah Ferguson about how confident he was that Mr Albanese had made calls personally to Mr Joyce for upgrades.
  
  
  'I am very comfortable with my sourcing,' Aston said.
  
  Asked whether he thought Mr Albanese had been influenced
  by Mr Joyce's lobbying to block UAE airline Qatar domestically Aston said it was 'implausible' to think that the Prime Minister's office
  had nothing to do with the decision.
  
  
  
  
  Mr Albanese's son Nathan, 24, has reportedly also been granted access to the Qantas Chairman's Lounge (pictured,
  Mr Albanese and son Nathan in May, 2022)
  
  'It's very hard to imagine a decision of any political sensitivity in the Albanese government that would not go through the Prime Minister's office,' Aston replied.
  
  
  
  He noted the opening up of the Australian domestic market Qatar had seemingly been sailing through with Transport Minister
  Catherine King speaking warmly about the proposal until 'everything changed' to stop it dead in tracks. 
  
   Ms King repeatedly denied in parliament the decision to block Qatar was due to Qantas lobbying her or any Labor colleagues.
  
  
  Despite Mr Albanese claiming he declared every upgrade received from Qantas the Australian Financial Review reported on Tuesday
  that he failed to do for his former wife Carmel Tebbutt when the two
  traveled together.
  
  
  
  
  Opposition Leader Peter Dutton has  questioned the alleged
  personal requests Mr Albanese made to Mr Joyce  while in his various parliamentary jobs
  
  
  
  
  
  Even when Scott Morrison was prime minister, Mr Joyce appeared to have a close relationship with Mr
  Albanese (the pair are pictured at an event
  in 2019)
  
  Sky New host Sharri Markson on Monday night labeled Mr Joyce as 'basically Albanese's
  personal travel agent.'
  
  'This is all a question of integrity. Most Australians struggle to afford
  even an economy airfare. They'd never be able to afford the luxury of business class.
  It's out of our reach,' she said.
  
  'Can Albanese truly be impartial when it comes to making
  decisions about Qantas when he's been getting
  tens of thousands of dollars worth of free upgrades to business class?
  The revelations puts the decision he made as transport minister and
  prime minister under a cloud.
  
  'Aside from the integrity issues, this revelation is also politically lethal.
  Albanese took care to curate a self-image of a housing commission boy who made it.
  But now the perception is cementing of a long-term pollie enjoying the perks of
  public office.'
  
  Another awkward paradox of Mr Albanese's  apparent close relationship with
  Mr Joyce is that the Labor leader in a trade unionist advocate while Qantas
  attempted to break the power of the Transport Workers Union by sacking 1700 staff
  during Covid. 
  
  The sacking has since been ruled illegal by Federal Court in a case brought by
  the union with Qantas facing possible hundreds of thousands in compensation payouts. 
  
  The friendship however did find one perhaps unlikely defender in semi-retired
  3AW radio star Neil Mitchell. 
  
  'Quick test: upgrade Albo is a bad look,' Mitchell wrote on X.
  
  
  'But does anybody believe he was seriously compromised by having Alan Joyce as a bestie?
  Time to rewrite rules governing politicians.' 
  
  WHAT IS THE QANTAS CHAIRMAN'S CLUB?
  
  The Qantas Chairman's Lounge is an invitation-only club approved by the company chairman, with the
  guest list a closely-guarded secret.
  
  It has been dubbed ¿the most exclusive club
  in the country¿ and comes with a distinct black card.
  
  
  Members include senior-ranking MPs including ministers, state premiers and the Prime Minister, leaders of major unions and
  sporting groups, Qantas ambassadors, selected A-list celebrities,
  major corporate figures and high-profile media personalities.
  
  
  The clubs can be found in Sydney, Melbourne, Canberra,
  Brisbane, Perth and Adelaide but are not signed, you have to know where to look.
  
  
  
  Inside you will find expensive wood and brass furnishings, wool carpet and marble flooring all bathed in natural light. 
  
  Members enjoy fine à la carte dining with a complimentary premium array of beers, spirits and Australian wines.
  
  Wine bottles are often given as departing gift
  
  Facilities may also include spas, showers and an assortment
  of books and magazines.
  
  Members may bring in two guests at a time. 
  
  Lounge attendants personally alert you when your flight is to
  board and your personal preferences are logged for each flight.
  Membership also entitles you to first-class facilities
  at Qantas partner airlines.
  
  free upgrades where they are available and a hotline to Qantas's customer service for any and all
  travel needs. 
  
  Source: Executive Traveller
  
   
  
   
  
   
  
  
  
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