Integrity expert says officials should turn down Qantas Chairman’s Lounge memberships

Memberships of the heads of the Reserve Bank and the Productivity Commission further evidence of airline’s soft power among political decision-makers

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The incoming Reserve Bank governor, Michele Bullock, and outgoing chair of the Productivity Commission, Michael Brennan, are members of Qantas’s high-end Chairman’s Lounge – an invitation-only perk a top public integrity expert says officials should turn down.

The memberships, contained in the gifts and benefits registers of the agencies, show how the airline has used its soft diplomacy to build relationships in Australia’s most important institutions, including the competition and corporate regulators and aviation safety authority.

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