CL /The Club under scrutiny

[Deleted member 29185]

Well, apparantly "privacy" reasons doesn't cut it with at least one senator in this story!

 

[MEL_Traveller]

Well, apparantly "privacy" reasons doesn't cut it with at least one senator in this story!

I don't think it's a bad idea to disclose membership to those clubs. Just like any other gift which should be on the gift registry.

 

[juddles]

The offering of such memberships is clearly of benefit and enjoyment to the receiver, and as such IMHO is clearly a gift. Unbelievable that any government employee can get such and it not be completely known.

 

[kpc]

It is not a gift but a cynical attempt by both Va and Qf to buy favours....

 

[juddles]

It is not a gift but a clynical attempt by both Va and Qf to buy favours....

Isn't that what all "gifts" are??

 

[juddles]

When I worked for the Queensland Police they were very big on "gift" declarations and bribes, etc. As they should be. Post-Fitzgerald and all that. We were scrupulous in avoiding being tainted by ANYTHING that could be perceived as such. I spent half a year doing gun audits - basically visiting every gun owner in a rural area to ensure the weapons were registered and they had sufficiently secure storage, etc. This involved visiting many a farm or country property and of course, these people were very nice. Typical aussie country hospitality. I will never forget the look on the face of my boss when I got back to the station one day. I walked into his office, placed a large butternut pumpkin on his desk, and advised him I wished to declare that I had received a gift during the course of my official duties, and wanted to report it.

He spoke "french" to me that day

 

[MEL_Traveller]

Isn't that what all "gifts" are??

It can also be a token of appreciation, or signal of friendship/cooperation/partnership. Many government departments have a (low) $50 limit to account for gifts that fall into that category.

 

[mannej]

It can also be a token of appreciation, or signal of friendship/cooperation/partnership. Many government departments have a (low) $50 limit to account for gifts that fall into that category.

It can also be legislation as to what is a notifiable gift etc.

 

[Strategic Aviation]

It would be interesting to see politicians questioned on the record about CL/Club membership, and to know which of those that have not declared it in their Statement of Registrable Interests do actually hold one or both memberships. Perhaps Senator Hanson for example.

According to the ABC, "Qantas has a general rule that all Federal MPs have Chairman's Lounge membership" and one seriously questions how many politicians turn down the offer compared to the number that ostensibly don't have it (by virtue of it not being listed in their SoRI).

 

[Deleted member]

As QF WP will,attest, in our business , even a cup of coffee provided to us by a product provider is something we need to be careful of (threshold limits notwithstanding). And as for a lunch ! ! The world is a very different place.
Frankly I have never been swayed by any such “gifts” or “inducements”.
My take on the whole CL thing is that I reckon it’s a bit overblown. If politicians are so worried about the CL “gift” it’s a simple matter for them to lead by example and reject all such membership arrangements , but to paraphrase the NZ Tui Beer ads .... “Yeah Right”!

 

[Captain Halliday]

This is almost two years old, but gives an indication of who has CL.

Searchable by name/party/electorate:
Access to exclusive Qantas, Virgin lounges tops parliamentary gift register - ABC News (Australian Broadcasting Corporation)

 

[Strategic Aviation]

This is almost two years old, but gives an indication of who has CL.

Linked in my post #9 and gives a partial indication but is undoubtedly incomplete (hence my post).

Some politicians don't think complimentary CL/Club membership is a registrable interest.

 

[Forg]

^ And yet public servants who get to enjoy travelling 28hrs in economy for work purposes, for 3 day meetings then the same 28hrs back again, aren’t allowed to collect frequent-flyer points on these trips because it would be viewed as “getting something for free on the public dollar” ...

 

[rock86]

^ And yet public servants who get to enjoy travelling 28hrs in economy for work purposes, for 3 day meetings then the same 28hrs back again, aren’t allowed to collect frequent-flyer points on these trips because it would be viewed as “getting something for free on the public dollar” ...

What department is this?

My wife is a public servant for QHealth and always uses her FF account on all her work bookings, never been informed she is not allowed to do this.

 

[Forg]

What department is this?

Industry, Innovation & Science.
They're also not allowed to book their own flights, because if they did that they could buy discounted rates as opposed to the official travel agent (a cynical person would suggest that the owner of said travel agent was someone in Canberra's mate) they must use which charges RRP.
They used to be able to get that RRP quote, look on WebJet, complain about the fact that they can get the same tickets online for 2/3 the price and get a near-price-match; but don't know if they can still do that, was a few years ago I heard about that one (in fact I think they might not be able to do this any more because they have to get that special no-FF-points ticket ... unsure about that bit though).

 

[get me outta here]

There is a difference btw State, local and the Feds on these regulations, and even then they are inconsistent. The Feds negotiate that the public serpents will not get any points when booking through the contracted travel people. SCs yes, but not points.

What department is this?

My wife is a public servant for QHealth and always uses her FF account on all her work bookings, never been informed she is not allowed to do this.

 

[rock86]

There is a difference btw State, local and the Feds on these regulations, and even then they are inconsistent. The Feds negotiate that the public serpents will not get any points when booking through the contracted travel people. SCs yes, but not points.

How ridiculous and hypocritical of federal politicians then, yet it is not at all surprising.

 

[Happy Dude]

I've worked on overseas projects with public servants and they all flew J because the flight was longer than (IIRC) 5 hours. Contractors were booked into full Y. I accrued points and status accordingly.

Sounds like the DIIS staff are not being treated equally.

 

[kermatu]

Length of flight plus level of seniority in the (federal) public service also dictates class of travel.

CL/Club membership for senior public servants is a disgrace. Maybe Secretaries warrant it, but deputies? Please. If travelling with their Minister then they could access the CL with them. For general meetings and private travel it's a joke.

I don't have a problem with Ministers having membership and a more private space at airports. In my experience Ministers spend as little time as possible in airports and don't abuse the privilege. It's hangers-on like me that take advantage of the rare entry!

Less of a case for other politicians. But all should be declared.

 

[equus]

They're also not allowed to book their own flights, because if they did that they could buy discounted rates as opposed to the official travel agent...... they must use which charges RRP.

Things may not always be what they seem. One possible feature of corporate deals is rebates paid directly to procurement, head office, finance dept etc. Each fare appears to be RRP and those booking get charged it (so their budget takes the hit), then later on, depending on the total spent across the whole companny, Department etc., a percentage rebate is paid - often a large percentage.

This approach makes comparing price on a flight by flight basis meaningless, as it is often the total spend which dictates the rebate amount, which won’t be known until much later.