Qantas awarded defence travel gig without competition
It appears that Qantas has been awarded a $900 million defence air contract without other carriers being asked to bid, with Australian defence force heads now under pressure to explain how the deal was awarded.
The contract gives Qantas the right to transport military personnel, but the Seven Network reports that other air carriers have revealed that they were never asked to submit a tender for the contract.
Labor’s Federal Defence Spokesman Joel Fitzgibbon said potential bidders had been blocked from applying for the defence personnel contract, saying it was a scandal.
He added, “Last time this contract was met it was subject to a competitive tender saving the taxpayer tens, if not hundreds of millions of dollars.”
Limited information is available on the five-year contract which covers defence travel and accommodation, but a defence spokesperson told Seven that the department had not called for tenders because Qantas was the only company that could fill the contract.
A spokesman for Defence Minister Brendan Nelson distanced himself from the decision, saying it was all the work of the department and Qantas declined to comment.
Later, Mr Fitzgibbon declared the deal a breach of Department of Finance guidelines, adding, “It’s reduced competition.” “If it’s not possible that the deal be revisited then the loser is the taxpayer.”
Report by The Mole
John Alwyn-Jones
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