An Australian government minister is facing intense scrutiny and backlash after it was revealed she spent close to $100,000 of public funds on flights for a brief trip to New York to promote the nation's proposed social media age restrictions.
Luxury Flights for a Three-Day Mission
Documents presented to Senate Estimates show that Communications Minister Anika Wells, along with two staff members, incurred airfare costs totalling $94,828.75 for a visit in September. The trip coincided with the United Nations General Assembly's High-Level Week.
The breakdown reveals the minister's personal flights cost $34,426.58. Her Deputy Chief of Staff's tickets amounted to $38,165.86, while an Assistant Secretary from the Department of Communications added $22,236.31 to the bill.
This expenditure stands in stark contrast to the typical cost of economy class flights from Brisbane to New York, which usually range between $1,500 and $2,500.
Questionable Timing and Mounting Costs
The official purpose of the journey was to showcase Australia's 'world-leading' online safety reforms, specifically its push to introduce a minimum age for social media accounts. During her visit, Wells met with executives from tech giants like Microsoft, Meta, and Amazon, and spoke at high-profile events including the Clinton Global Initiative Annual Meeting.
However, the trip's justification has been called into question, as Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and Foreign Minister Penny Wong were already in New York representing Australia at the same UN gathering.
Beyond flights, the total cost was significantly higher:
- Accommodation and ground transport added thousands more.
- The Department of Communications spent approximately $70,000 hosting a UN child protection event.
- Incidental costs for Wells and her staff are still being processed, meaning the final total could rise further.
Political Fallout and Criticism
The revelation has ignited a political firestorm. Liberal Senator Sarah Henderson led the criticism, slamming the expenditure as an example of the Labor government's 'wrong priorities' during a cost-of-living crisis.
'Not only did Anika Wells offensively jetset to New York as the Triple Zero crisis unfolded, she did so at enormous cost to Australian taxpayers,' Henderson stated, referencing a catastrophic Optus network outage that occurred during Wells's absence, which blocked emergency calls and was linked to four deaths.
The controversy emerges just a week before Australia's social media ban for children under 16 is set to come into effect. Minister Wells is scheduled to address the National Press Club in Canberra, where she is likely to face further questions regarding the expensive overseas promotion of the policy.
