Mathias Cormann’s $23,000 travel bill for Broome trips over five years
2010-2014
Finance Minister Mathias Cormann billed taxpayers more than $23,000 for weekend trips to the beach resort town of Broome with his wife over five years, according to the Sydney Morning Herald.
Between 2010 and 2014 WA senator Cormann and his wife made five taxpayer-funded trips to Broome on weekends for electorate business. A three-day trip in July 2014 cost taxpayers $6696, including $5662 on flights. Senator Cormann also claimed $820 in travel allowance and $214 in car costs.
According to the SMH, a previous trip from Friday to Sunday at the start of July 2013 cost taxpayers $4563, and a similar trip in May 2012 cost $4831. Senator Cormann also claimed family travel costs for trips over weekends in March and July 2010. The total cost of the five trips was $23,088.
A spokeswoman for Senator Cormann said all his travel was “undertaken within the applicable rules on work expenses and has at all times been appropriately declared”.
“Senator Cormann’s job as a senator for Western Australia necessarily involves travel across his very large electorate to attend functions and meet with constituents, business and community stakeholders,” the spokeswoman said. “Inevitably, much of the travel and attendance at functions and events in the electorate, whether in Perth or across regional WA, occurs Fridays to Sundays, when Senator Cormann has returned back to his home state from interstate parliamentary work commitments.”
A 30-year veteran of the mainstream media, Liz was the editor of MWMuntil June 2021. Liz began her career in journalism in 1990 and worked at The Age newspaper for two 10-year stints. She also worked at The Guardian newspaper in London for more than seven years. A former professional tennis player who represented Australia in the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics, Liz has a Bachelor of Arts and a Bachelor of Letters (Hons).