Senate Nationals Leader Bridget McKenzie has withdrawn her call to break up Australia’s flag carrier Qantas and its subsidiary airline, Jetstar, just hours after it was published.
Pointing to Qantas’ dominance in the market, the senator said the government had protected the airline with its decision to block competition from Qatar Airways, and prevent the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) from monitoring airfares.
She also stated that government’s unwillingness to reform the industry came at a cost for Australian consumers and businesses.
However, just hours after the article was published, Nationals Leader David Littleproud appeared spoke to media, clarifying the Opposition’s position.
While Littleproud agreed with the arguments that McKenzie raised in the op-ed, he said her proposal to divest Qantas had not gone through the Shadow cabinet.
“We haven’t had the reviews that have identified where the competition bottlenecks are with aviation, but this is the first step that we should be open-minded to work through that process in a transparent way, and understand the options and be guided, in many cases, by what the ACCC believe are the tools they need.”
Following Littleproud’s remarks, McKenzie held a press conference in which she backed down on her previous proposal.
The senator denied that she had called for divesting Qantas.
“In my opinion piece in the AFR that I hope you have all read, I explicitly rule out needing to break up Jetstar and Qantas,” she said.
In addition, she said she would like the government to examine the tools it had to bring down airfares for Australians.
Meanwhile, Qantas has declined to comment on McKenzie’s previous proposal.
