Finance Minister Mathias Cormann, who is responsible for keeping government spending under control, billed taxpayers more than $23,000 for weekend trips to the beach resort town of Broome with his wife over five years.
The final trip to the picturesque town was undertaken two months after the Abbott government delivered its politically toxic 2014 budget, which contained significant cuts to education and social security payments as well as a new payment to see the doctor.
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MP entitlements: a systemic problem
Independent MP Andrew Wilkie wants the parliamentary entitlements system overhauled and thinks the current crop of politicians should have better judgement when claiming expenses. Courtesy ABC.
Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull on Friday announced he would overhaul the parliamentary entitlements system by establishing a new independent body to oversee MPs' expense claims.
Although Health Minister Sussan Ley insisted she had not broken any rules, she resigned from the ministry after a week of revelations about her frequent taxpayer-funded travel to the Gold Coast where she bought a luxury apartment.
Mr Turnbull said it was important for politicians to remember they were spending "other people's money" and that the Australian people expected "value for money" from MPs' use of taxpayer-funded entitlements.
A focus of reform is expected to be politicians' use of family travel entitlements, which allow family members to travel with MPs' on official or electorate business for a set number of trips a year.
Between 2010 and 2014 Senator Cormann, a senator from Western Australia, 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.
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."
She said Senator Cormann's business in Broome over this period included meetings with the local shire and business leaders and attending local Liberal Party branch meetings. He also spoke at a Pastoralists and Graziers Association Conference and attended the local races.
Senator Cormann, who was pictured smoking a cigar with then treasurer Joe Hockey while finalising the 2014 budget, attended last year's AFL grand final on a taxpayer-funded trip as did Foreign Affairs Minister Julie Bishop.
A 2016 independent review into parliamentary entitlements, led by retired senior public servant David Tune, found a "focus of concern is travel 'inside entitlement' but outside reasonable expectations and standards".
"This includes extravagant modes of travel, business class travel by children and interstate family 'holidays' at exotic locations," the panel found.
"Regardless of their legality, such claims are perceived to be inappropriate, and erode public confidence not only in individual parliamentarians but in the system itself."
The panel recommended family travel provisions be tightened to prohibit the use of entitlements to undertake family holidays.
It was revealed this week Labor frontbenchers Chris Bowen and Brendan O'Connor charged taxpayers more than $10,000 each to take their families to Darwin during the 2015 July school holidays while travelling on official business.
Environment Minister Greg Hunt, who lives in Melbourne, also charged taxpayers for 12 trips with his family to Queensland holiday resorts.
Senator Cormann's spokeswoman said the provision of family reunion travel recognises the lengthy time politicians are required to spend away from home for their work.