Natalie Barr grills Reserve Bank of Australia over Kmart dig: Central bank backlash over thousands spent on soirees while raising interest rates

Natalie Barr has criticized a Reserve Bank official for claiming it was “unappealing” to shop at Kmart as opposition to the central bank continues to grow.

The Sunrise host was baffled by the “disparaging” comment in an email from an RBA employee.

The internal email was one of several documents released following a freedom of information request.

Documents showed that the RBA spent thousands of dollars in taxpayers’ money on soirees, while simultaneously raising interest rates for millions of Australians.

One email from an employee was about buying holiday decorations and complaining about having to shop at discount stores Kmart or Big W.

“One employee was concerned about spending and then before the Christmas party said, ‘I know it doesn’t sound appealing, but Kmart and BIG W do have good Christmas decorations at an affordable price,’ Barr said Monday.

The documents also showed that outgoing RBA boss Philip Lowe held an intimate reception for Wayne Byres, the chairman of Australia’s Prudential Regulation Authority.

Tandoori chicken skewers and bottles of shiraz were among the food and drinks offered at the event.

The RBA then hosted a special board dinner in Hobart a month later, earning a $13,700 food bill and a $4,000 alcohol bill.

Dr. Lowe had just raised the cash rate to 2.85 percent from just 0.1 percent seven months earlier.

“Higher interest rates and higher inflation are putting pressure on many households’ budgets,” Dr Lowe wrote in a statement following the hike.

“The board expects to raise interest rates further in the near future.”

The central bank also suggested setting up a “photo booth with funny hats” for its Christmas party.

Outrage has erupted following the revelations, as the cost to taxpayers came at a time when the RBA was in the process of raising interest rates.

Natalie Barr (pictured), host of Sunrise, took the disparaging issue to Tanya Plibersek, who said ‘any public institution should be very careful about the way it spends its money’.

The Reserve Bank of Australia hit its cash interest rate in August for the second month in a row to an 11-year high of 4.1 percent.

But since May 2022, interest rates have risen 12 times, marking the most dramatic pace of monetary policy tightening since 1989.

Nationals MP Barnaby Joyce joined the strike against the RBA after news of the lavish soirees.

“Come on, come on, that’s other people’s money and you need to be more transparent about that,” he told Barr.

Labor Environment and Water Minister Tanya Plibersek was quick to bring down the RBA as well.

Ms Barr took particular issue with an employee’s email, saying: “One employee even expressed concerns about spending and then before the Christmas party said, ‘I know it doesn’t sound appealing, but Kmart and BIG W do have a number of good Christmas decorations at a budget price”

Dr. Lowe has previously sparked outrage for raising interest rates while still living a life of luxury

“Every public institution has to be very careful about how it spends its money,” she said.

“If you’re completely happy with the money you’re spending on lunch and a $4,000 grog bill and a $13,000 food bill, make sure you put it in the paper the next day.”

“And of course you wouldn’t. I have no problem with them having lunch and dinner, we’re not that stupid. It’s a professional organization.’

Dr. Lowe has previously sparked outrage for raising interest rates while still living a life of luxury.

In March, he made time to visit Bonnie Doon Golf Club in Pagewood, in Sydney’s eastern suburbs, to enjoy a game on the green.

Membership fees at the club start at $9,700, while golfers also have to pay an annual membership fee of $3,350 – but that would hardly make a dent in Dr. Lowe.