North West Queensland cheaper air fares advocate Hamish Griffin says the state government is not speaking with one voice about flight prices.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
In the Mount Isa state cabinet last week Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk acknowledged it was the "number one issue" in town, and she said she would ask Transport Minister Mark Bailey to look at the problem
Mr Griffin - who met Mr Bailey during the cabinet visit - said that while it was good the Premier has acknowledged that the cost of air travel was a significant problem, it was a shame that her Transport Minister doesn't feel the same.
Mr Griffin asked Mr Bailey whether the government would regulate the route between Mount Isa/Cloncurry and Townsville with a subsidised cap of $199 each way.
"His answer... "No, we have no plan to regulate that route and have no say in what the airlines charge," Mr Griffin said. "I asked why not? and he went on to say that regulated routes are only for remote areas with small populations and no competition. I said 'like Cloncurry'."
Mr Griffin said he told the minister it was odd that Virgin don't fly any routes that Qantas fly and vice versa and they are both in a very comfortable relationship with airline peak body A4ANZ.
"He said that if I had evidence of collusion that I should report it to the ACCC," Mr Griffin said.
He also repeated a question asked by Robbie Katter in parliament about whether the department would buy price tracking software to record air fares.
"The minister replied that he had never heard of such software and would be happy for his people to investigate what was involved in investing in it and they would start by talking to Townsville airport." he said.
Mr Griffin asked was where was the long-awaited state government review into regulated air routes.
"One of his staffers said that a review had in fact happened, the minister stated that the results were likely commercial in confidence and I disagreed, I said that surely the tender process was public and published and his staffer agreed and said that he would look into the findings of the review and get back to me on what can be shared," he said.
Mr Griffin said he wanted to see what the federal government was doing with the Senate Inquiry.
The Deputy Prime Minster has promised action on the review but there has been nothing since the findings were published in June.
READ ALSO: A big year for Cloncurry
While you are here subscribe to our weekly email to your inbox at 6am every Friday
Derek Barry
Editor of the North West Star Mount Isa since January 2016. Prior to that, an editor at several regional southern Queensland newspapers. Passionate about telling local stories. Comes with a strange accent to due an Irish accident of birth.
Editor of the North West Star Mount Isa since January 2016. Prior to that, an editor at several regional southern Queensland newspapers. Passionate about telling local stories. Comes with a strange accent to due an Irish accident of birth.
