Qantas has slammed proposed amendments to the Qantas Sale Act which, the airline says, “would threaten the viability of Qantas, cost jobs in Australia and change the spirit and intent of the Actâ€.
Joyce, speaking during the opening stages of yesterday’s Senate Inquiry into the Qantas Bill, said the Qantas group would have to be split up and Jetstar and its Asia interests sold if the Qantas Sale Act is amended as proposed.
In a later statement, Joyce said the Bill would have the effect of handcuffing Qantas to investments in Australia only and prevent it from investing capital and resources into new airline ventures anywhere outside Australia.
“The Bill being proposed would not do more to protect Australia’s Qantas. It would not make us more Australian,†he said.
“It would not protect Australian jobs. It would have the opposite effect. It would put our business in jeopardy. It would threaten Australian jobs.â€
Joyce said the Bill represented “a significant threat to the viability of Qantas and the growing number of Jetstar airlines operating in Asia – even those that don’t fly to and from Australiaâ€.
