Key Points
- The Senate inquiry will look into flight prices and consumer rights.
- Opposition transport spokeswoman Bridget McKenzie will head the inquiry committee.
- A Qatar Airways representative was invited to Tuesday’s hearing, but declined to appear.
Flight prices, airline competition and consumer rights will come under the spotlight at a Senate inquiry after the government made a controversial decision to block extra flights from Qatar Airways.
Opposition transport spokeswoman Bridget McKenzie is heading a committee on Australia’s bilateral air services agreements that will begin hearings on Tuesday.
McKenzie has been critical of Transport Minister Catherine King’s decision to reject Qatar Airways’ bid to double the 28 weekly services it currently offers in Australia, after being lobbied by Qantas.
Critics claim the move shields Qantas from competition and allows them to inflate airfares.
Though King has claimed the decision was made in the national interest, she has not elaborated on the reasons.
McKenzie said it was the equivalent of an economic sanction.
“It’s actually impacted our economy and it’s impacted Qatar Airways economic future,” she told ABC radio on Tuesday.
On claims by the government the decision was somewhat in response to human rights abuses in the Middle Eastern nation, Senator McKenzie said governments “don’t usually jump straightaway to economic sanctions”.
“We work our way through diplomatic frameworks and processes.”
The senator has also accused the government of having a cosy relationship with Qantas and suggested the carrier’s support of the Yes campaign for the upcoming referendum could have been done to bolster its political sway with the government.
Tuesday hearing to focus primarily on consumer concerns
The committee is expecting to hear from the current and former heads of Qantas and other airlines, alongside representatives from airports and unions, economists, the Qatari ambassador, the consumer watchdog and the Productivity Commission.
Tuesday’s hearings will focus on consumer concerns and issues at Sydney Airport after a June report from the consumer watchdog alleged Qantas had cancelled flights to keep take-off and landing slots at the east coast airport.
Former Qantas CEO Alan Joyce during the Senate Select Committee on the Cost of Living at Parliament House, Melbourne. Source: AAP / JOEL CARRETT
Qatar Airways chief executive Akbar Al Baker was invited to the Tuesday hearing but declined, though he could appear at a later date.
Labor senator Tony Sheldon said he was “very disappointed” and that Baker was no more above the law or parliamentary scrutiny than Qantas chairman Richard Goyder or its CEO Vanessa Hudson.
“Qatar Airways and the Qatar Civil Aviation Authority need to be hauled before this Committee in the coming days,” he said in a statement.
Qantas facing a tidal wave of costly marketing disasters
However, McKenzie remains confident all invited parties will assist the inquiry later on.
“In all our discussions thus far, they’re very amenable to assisting the committee with their inquiries and I think that’s a really positive thing.”
The Australian carrier has faced a recent storm of PR disasters marked by a Senate grilling on its $2.47 billion profit during a cost-of-living crisis, a potential $250 million fine from the consumer watchdog for flight cancellations.
Compounding these issues are its former CEO Alan Joyce’s expedited exit, and a major High Court loss which found the airline had illegally sacked 1600 workers during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The committee will hold four public hearings, one each in Sydney, Perth, Brisbane and Canberra.
Submissions for the inquiry closed on Monday and it is due to report by October 9.
