Tony Burke’s VERY cruisy $57,000 overseas trip to the US paid for by YOU is laid bare in bombshell diary entries detailing a dinner and a BBQ (and not much else…) – as he hits out

Top Labor Minister Tony Burke claims his taxpayer-funded, four-day, $57,000 trip to the United States was far busier and more powerful than his quiet ministerial diary suggests.

Mr Burke, Minister of Arts and Employment Relations and Leader of the House of Representatives, is at the center of controversy after being called out for the costs of his trip to Washington.

His sparse diary shows only a handful of travel notes – and even includes a 15-minute journey from his accommodation as one of three official business that day.

But Mr Burke now claims he was also involved in key important meetings that were not recorded in his official diary entries.

He flew with a staffer – traveling business class – to the US as part of a delegation with Deputy Prime Minister Richard Marles for the Australian American Leadership Dialogue.

His official diary for the event – ​​July 11 to 15, 2022 – reveals that the trip wasn’t too arduous with only a handful of commitments, including a barbecue breakfast, a three-hour dinner and two 20-minute Microsoft Teams meetings .

The handful of commitments listed included a 15-minute window during which he ‘left’ his accommodation to go to another address – one of only three official business he conducted that day.

Mr. Burke had one official meeting on his calendar during the four days. It was a meeting with Senator Tammy Baldwin of Wisconsin, member of a US labor and pensions committee.

But otherwise, Mr. Burke’s usually packed schedule was almost entirely clear.

He had a day off on Tuesday with no scheduled commitments, nothing other than his 20-minute Teams meeting and dinner on Wednesday, and only 3.5 hours of appointments on Friday.

But Mr Burke has since argued that the trip was vital to him and that it was ‘in the national interest’.

Speaking on the doorstep after the Daily Telegraph revealed he had spent $57,000 of taxpayers’ money on the trip, Mr Burke said: ‘There are aspects of today’s story that have been left out that actually explain the importance of that trip. ‘

‘We now have very important legislation related to AUKUS, which required meetings. Today’s article made no reference to the meetings held at the White House.

“There is no reference to the meetings held with the AUKUS caucus, which is happening across the aisle, and only one of the meetings with individual members of Congress.

‘I’m not really concerned with that, but I just want to say that it was an important trip of national importance. When I spoke to the Prime Minister, I decided to ensure that both the Defense Secretary and myself as Leader of the House were present, and that was the right thing to do.”

While Mr. Marles was frequently spotted speaking and attending formal events, Mr. Burke kept a largely low profile during the trip. Only one photo exists in public records of him abroad.

Mr Burke plays a crucial role in passing legislation as Mr Albanese’s top lieutenant in the House of Representatives – where he has a majority – but his portfolios are not the main ones driving the government’s AUKUS policy.

Mr. Burke still billed taxpayers for double the amount Mr. Marles did, including $44,000 in round-trip business class airfare for him and a staff member, and more than $8,000 in rental cars.

A further $4,000 was spent on food and accommodation, while both Mr Burke and his associate required priority delegate passports, at a cost of $533 per person.

Below, Daily Mail Australia takes a closer look at the work Mr Burke did during those four days, based on the contents of his own diary that week.

DAY ONE

On July 11, Mr Burke left Sydney on a 9.30am United Airlines flight, sitting in business class with one personal staff member.

He arrived in Los Angeles at 11 p.m. and traveled on to Washington.

The first full day of his trip was Tuesday, July 12.

On this day, Mr. Burke had no events scheduled in his official calendar.

DAY TWO

Wednesday, July 13, marked the official start of formalities for Mr. Burke.

He held a 20-minute briefing with his department via Teams from 7am to 7.20am Sydney time – approximately 3pm – 3.20pm in his time zone.

His next official appointment mentioned in the diary was not until 5:00 PM local time, when he joined Richard Marles for dinner at the Australian ambassador’s residence.

DAY THREE

Mr. Burke’s work commitments began again – according to his diary – around 3 p.m. local time on day three, July 14.

He met with Wisconsin Senator Tammy Baldwin, who serves on a U.S. Labor and Pensions Committee.

From there he attended a three-hour dinner at the American Institute for Peace to celebrate the forum’s thirtieth anniversary.

DAY FOUR

On Mr Burke’s last day in the US, he held another department briefing via Microsoft Teams in the afternoon.

From there he and colleagues participated in a final BBQ at the ambassador’s home. He then left with his driver towards the Jefferson Hotel.

He flew out Saturday and returned home on a United Airlines flight.

He arrived at Sydney Airport at 7am, where a government Comcar was waiting to take him home.

The minister faced backlash over previous tax laws

Secretary Burke has previously faced intense scrutiny over his spending habits.

In 2020, it was revealed that he had quietly repaid $8,600 to taxpayers for a much-criticized trip to Uluru he took with his family in 2012.

He charged taxpayers for business class tickets for himself and four “family travelers.”

He also billed taxpayers for travel expenses of $1,497 and $463 for a rental car, bringing the total cost for the trip to $12,707.

During Labour’s last spell in government, the taxpayer’s bill for travel costs between 2008 and 2015 was almost $2.2 million.

This is despite the fact that they have never been in the portfolios with the most reason to travel: foreign affairs, trade, treasury or defense.

None of these trips violated Parliament’s code of conduct.