Is the age of entitlement back ALREADY? Joe Hockeys $50,000 dinner bill paid for by taxpayers revealed days after tough budget Joe Hockeys department paid $50,000 for Shane Delia to cater G20 dinner in Washington Delia was flown in business class and his menu included barramundi, Wagyu beef and truffles Treasury department says it was excellent value for money Revelation comes days after tough budget tightened purse on families, public sector jobs and university students Federal Treasurer Joe Hockey declared the age of entitlement is over while slashing family payments and medical benefits in the Federal Budget on Tuesday. But less than a week later it has been revealed he submitted an expenses claim for $50,000 after hiring a celebrity chef to cater an event in Washington D.C. where he wined and dined G20 executives. Chef Shane Delias services were paid for with Australian taxpayer dollars at the April 10 event, where up to 60 finance ministers and central bank governors from G20 nations sat down to a top-shelf menu of barramundi, Victorian Wagyu beef and WA truffles, the Sunday Telegraph reported. The Treasury department even paid for Mr Delia to fly business class and covered the cost of transporting truffles from Australia to Washington D.C. A eucalyptus ice dessert was also served at the event. But Mr Hockey denies the $50,000 tender to provide professional chef for Washington event was a slap in the face to taxpayers, with a spokesman from his office saying the event proved to be excellent value for money. Shane Delia was engaged by the Treasury to deliver a working dinner for the finance ministers and central bank governors at the April Washington G20 meeting, the spokesman told the newspaper. His contract included costs of the dinner, travel to Washington and accommodation. We believe Shanes involvement in the Washington meeting provided excellent value for money, given he created a long-lasting impression in the minds of a group of global economic leaders. Delia runs Maha, a Middle Eastern restaurant on Bond St in Melbournes CBD, and hosts his own cooking show, Shane Delias Spice Journey, on SBS. It comes days after Mr Hockey delivered the first budget of the Tony Abbott Government and promised the age of entitlement was over, as he announced a $7 charge for GP visits and thousands of public service job cuts among a raft of tough new initiatives. University students have been vocal about the Coalitions budget after a major shake-up of tertiary education funding left young learners facing a double whammy of financial pain. From 2016 universities will be allowed to charge what they like while the governments contributions will drop. The higher education loans program will also become less generous, with graduates made to start repaying the loans once they earn $50,638 from mid-2016, almost $700 less than now. Read more: dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2631397/Is-age-entitlement-ALREADY-Joe-Hockeys-50-000-dinner-bill-paid-taxpayers-revealed-days-tough-budget.html
Posted on: Wed, 18 Jun 2014 11:03:57 +0000
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