Michelle Rowland will repay taxpayers after IPEA found guidelines were breached during Perth 2023 trip

A senior Labor minister broke parliamentary rules during a work trip to Perth, the independent expenses watchdog has found, with a portion of her taxpayer-funded trip now due to be repaid. Attorney-General Michelle Rowland was the second MP, after communications and sports minister Anika Wells, to self-refer expenditure to the Independent Parliamentary Expenses Authority (IPEA) after days of scrutiny over parliamentarians’ taxpayer-funded travel entitlements. Ms Rowland referred expenses incurred during a family trip to Perth in July 2023 that billed taxpayers more than $21,000, and included business class flights valued at about $16,000. She attended at least 10 ministerial engagements in Perth before taking a holiday with her family. Ms Rowland will repay a portion of her spending after formally accepting advice from IPEA on Friday, a spokesman for the Attorney-General said in a statement. It is unclear what part of the expense the repayments will cover. NewsWire understands on the days she was holidaying with family, Ms Rowland did not claim travel allowances and paid her own expenses and accommodation. ‘Appropriate’: Chalmers defends colleagues On Sunday, Treasurer Jim Chalmers defended his colleagues and resisted calls for Ms Rowland’s resignation. “I think Michelle has done the right thing in asking the IPEA to take another look, as has Anika asked the independent organisation to make sure that everything that’s happened here is within the rules,” he told Sky News. “I think that’s appropriate. I also think it’s appropriate that the PM has sought advice. We’ll get that advice in due course, and we’ll consider it.” Mr Chalmers respected the “substantial amount of community concern” channelled in the grilling faced by parliamentarians over the last week, but would not make judgment calls on his colleagues, he said. “My colleagues work extremely hard, and as I said before, from time to time, they have utilised these family reunion arrangements,” he said. “I think in (my) case, it’s made sense to do that for budget night, for election night, and on a small number of other occasions. “But I’m not going to make judgments about others. You know, everyone’s responsibility, including mine, is to adhere to the rules. Those rules are not set in stone. “From time to time, we seek advice on making sure that they meet community standards. “That’s what’s happened on this occasion. We’ve sought that advice.” Rowland’s future up to PM: McIntosh Liberal MP Melissa McIntosh refused to be drawn on whether Ms Rowland should be forced to resign, saying the decision lies in the hands of the Prime Minister. “My view is that the Prime Minister should have stepped up when he had the invitation from the Opposition Leader to sit down and review what’s going on,” Ms McIntosh told Sky News. Ms McIntosh was referring to Sussan Ley’s offer to Mr Albanese earlier this week to sit down and hash out a bipartisan position on changing the IPEA rules. “You have the IPEA standards, which we all have to adhere to, but as a minister of the Crown, you have additional standards when it comes to your ministerial code of conduct,” Ms McIntosh said. “It is clear here that (Michelle Rowland) needs to be referred by the Prime Minister to (the Department of) Prime Minister and Cabinet for a thorough investigation.” This week, Anthony Albanese told reporters he had sought advice from IPEA on whether parliamentary entitlement rules should change, amid the lengthy expenses saga. “At least two members of parliament have referred themselves for the details of their audit, but in addition to that, I’ve said to IPEA, ‘Please give us some advice’,” the Prime Minister told reporters on Friday. “And when that advice is received, we’ll make a decision in the usual way, but it’s important to get that advice.” The saga, which has engulfed politicians of all political persuasions, erupted after revelations Ms Wells spent hundreds of thousands of dollars in family reunion expenses to take her husband and children to an F1 Grand Prix, three AFL grand finals, and cricket Test matches. Ms Wells has defended her spending as being within IPEA rules, and self-referred her expenditure for independent review.