Peter Dutton photographed with The Chairman’s Lounge author Joe Aston

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Peter Dutton has been snapped catching up with the writer of the bombshell caller publication The Chairman’s Lounge underlining what Labor critics assertion are his links to the Liberal Party.

Former columnist with the Australian Financial Review Joe Aston has made nary concealed of his past arsenic a Liberal staffer with Joe Hockey and Bruce Baird.

But his drawback ups with the Liberal person Peter Dutton person present emerged courtesy of a drawback taken by a chap diner astatine Brasserie 1930 successful Sydney successful April, 2024.

The brace person known each different for years.

Stung by disapproval of his narration with Qantas, Mr Albanese falsely accused the well-connected Aston this week of failing to state helium erstwhile worked for some the Liberal Party and Qantas, successful an effort to discredit his reporting.

“I don’t spot declarations that he’s a erstwhile Liberal Party staffer for a fig of elder members of the Liberal Party, including Joe Hockey and Bruce Baird,” Mr Albanese said.

“I don’t spot declarations that he’s a erstwhile Qantas employee.”

This was mendacious and Aston fired backmost astatine the Prime Minister saying the property league made him look “beyond desperate”.

Aston besides antecedently worked for Qantas arsenic a communications executive, arsenic helium outlines successful his caller publication The Chairman’s Lounge and his woman Annabelle Aston besides worked for Qantas’ communications operation. The mates met astatine a Qantas event.

Mr Albanese has present categorically denied claims successful Aston’s publication that helium personally sought upgrades from the Qantas CEO.

“The Prime Minister did not ever telephone Alan Joyce seeking an upgrade,” a spokesperson said.

“All question has been appropriately declared and is simply a substance of nationalist record.”

The caller relationship straight contradicts an relationship successful Aston’s book, that asserts “Albanese would liaise with Joyce straight astir his idiosyncratic travel”.

Government sources said it had taken 5 days to contented the steadfast denial to let unit to spell backmost and cheque the records arsenic acold backmost arsenic 20 years ago.

But Aston maintains Prime Minister Anthony Albanese had an “insatiable appetite for VIP question and hospitality”.

In the interrogation with big Sky News’ Sharri Markson, said the Prime Minister was trying to “shoot the messenger”.

“He’s unluckily decided to sprout the messenger, and helium seems incapable to reply the lone question that radical are funny successful hearing,” Aston said.

Another confidante of Peter Dutton’s, erstwhile Liberal curate Jamie Briggs who was precocious hired arsenic the Liberal Party’s main governmental advisor for the upcoming predetermination campaign, was besides successful attendance astatine Aston’s publication motorboat successful Sydney featuring a who’s who of concern leaders and media executives.

Mr Briggs famously injured himself during “high jinks with the erstwhile premier minister” aft helium was rolled arsenic Prime Minister during a enactment spill “wake” astatine Parliament House successful 2015. He was past wheeled into a enactment country gathering successful a wheelchair.

“Everyone knows that Tony Abbott is simply a precise acceptable man, he’s a precise beardown man, and I’m not astatine the highest of my powers arsenic acold arsenic fittingness and spot is acrophobic and I lost,” Mr Briggs told 2GB.

“We were mucking around, fto maine enactment it that way.”

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