Editorial: Anthony Albanese’s freebie-seeking won’t fly with the public

If you don’t ask, you don’t get.

Anthony Albanese had no problem asking, and in return, he certainly got.

Free upgrades on at least 22 Qantas flights over a decade, including on a personal holiday to Hawaii in 2012 as well as trips to Europe.

The Prime Minister says he’s done nothing wrong. After all, he declared “every single thing” gifted to him by the national carrier.

“From time to time members of Parliament receive upgrades; what’s important is that they are declared. All of mine have been declared. I note that a range of them go back a long period of time,” Mr Albanese said on Sunday.

They do go back a long period of time — including during the period he was transport minister during the Rudd-Gillard years.

It’s naive to think that being Prime Minister — or even being just a lowly opposition backbencher — doesn’t open you up to a world of perks unavailable to mere mortals.

And most of us would leap at the chance to stretch our legs in business or first class, particularly if it’s offered for “free”. It’s hard to begrudge someone taking such an opportunity should it arise.

The issue with Mr Albanese’s travel is that these perks weren’t just offered, it’s reported they were actively sought.

Few would be so brazen as to contact the CEO of an airline directly as Mr Albanese is reported to have done with former Qantas boss Alan Joyce, soliciting freebies.

One can imagine how the conversation might go.

Via WhatsApp, perhaps: “Hey m8, flying SYD-HNL tmrw, geez that’s a long flight!”

Was that all it took for a spot at the front of the plane to miraculously open up?

Mr Albanese’s upgrades are estimated to have been worth many tens of thousands of dollars.

Labor members have pointed to decisions made by the Government which have been opposed by Qantas, including changes to industrial relations laws, to reject suggestions the airline received any special treatment as a result of Mr Albanese’s relationship with Mr Joyce.

But Qantas isn’t a charity. Someone at the airline believed it was to the company’s advantage to keep Mr Albanese in 1A.

Ultimately, the saga is yet another appalling lack of judgment on Mr Albanese’s behalf.

Particularly during the period in which he was transport minister, he should have foreseen that shooting off a text to Mr Joyce advising him of his travel plans in the hope of getting a free upgrade would create a perceived conflict of interest.

That this either didn’t occur to him — or that he didn’t care — is deeply troubling. It points to a strange lack of political acumen for someone who has spent the better part of three decades in Parliament.

In particular, it’s opened the Government up to easily foreseeable attacks over its decision last year to block Qatar Airways’ request to put on extra flights — a request which would have created more competition in the market and was vehemently opposed by Qantas.

That’s created the impression — justified or otherwise — that Qantas has received a hefty return on its investment in Mr Albanese.