Labor minister Anika Wells is facing fresh scrutiny over a taxpayer-funded trip to Adelaide that coincided with a close friend’s birthday party, with questions raised over where she held a meeting. 

Wells, the communications and sports minister, was in Adelaide on Saturday, June 7, for official engagements, including a meeting with South Australian Health Minister Chris Picton on the same night his wife, Connie Blefari, celebrated her 40th birthday.

Official diary entries show Wells met with a representative from Trade Minister Don Farrell’s office before a later meeting with Picton in the lead-up to the party.

But Wells later told the Independent Parliamentary Expenses Authority (IPEA) that the meeting with Picton had been ‘delayed’.

‘We instead held a sideline meeting during a function later that evening,’ she said, adding that her official duties concluded at 7.45pm.

That evening function turned out to be her close friend Blefari’s 40th birthday part at the ritzy Jade live music venue. 

IPEA said that because the meeting with Picton at the birthday party was parliamentary business, it was a ‘reasonable’ excuse for Wells to remain overnight.

Wells has repeatedly refused to answer questions about whether the official meetings were planned before or after she was invited to the birthday party, or whether the IPEA asked that question.

Travel queen Labor minister Anika Wells is facing fresh scrutiny over a taxpayer-funded trip to Adelaide that coincided with a close friend’s birthday party

The birthday party was held at the ritzy Jade venue in Adelaide – a live music venue and bar. Above, a scene from the Adelaide Fringe festival

More scenes from inside the Jade bar. Wells was asked which room she held her meeting in

Despite that, Wells’ birthday meeting trip has become the target of jibes in parliament, with Liberal MP Mary Aldred using Question Time to grill Wells.

‘In which room at the live music venue, The Jade, did the Minister hold her sideline meeting while at the 40th birthday party of her close personal friend – the bar, the garden kiosk, or the room with the pinball machine?’ she asked to laughter in the chamber.

Wells was quick to hit back.

‘As I have said to her on two previous occasions, I’ve given a full account of that to the IPEA.

‘There is a full report available published online, and you can refer there for the full account of the trip, which was considered completely within the rules.’

Wells was by IPEA to repay $10,116 after a five-month audit, released last Friday, found four breaches of parliamentary travel rules across multiple trips between 2022 and 2025.

Wells has faced mounting scrutiny since December, when it was revealed she spent $90,000 on a trip to New York to promote the government’s controversial social media ban. The controversy later widened to include a series of taxpayer-funded trips involving members of her family.

The expenses included Wells spending $7,000 to fly her highly-paid insurance company lobbyist husband, Finn McCarthy, to three AFL grand finals at taxpayers’ expense.

The Jade is an unusual venue for parliamentary business

Wells has been flying her husband Finn McCarthy around the country at taxpayers’ expense – despite him being a highly paid lobbyist for insurance giant Suncorp

Wells had a ‘sideline meeting’ with South Australian Health Minister Chris Picton at his wife Connie’s 40th birthday – who is a close friend of Wells – and charged taxpayers for the trip

Wells also charged taxpayers almost $1,000 for a chauffeur for seven hours on the day she attended the Australian Open in 2023, and more than $1,200 for nine hours on the day of the NRL and NRLW grand finals in 2022, according to the parliamentary expenses register.

The minister also spent $3,000 on flights and allowances for her husband and children to join her at Thredbo in June 2024 while she attended meetings with Paralympics Australia and Adaptive Festival organisers.

In another extraordinary expense, the minister had a secure communications facility installed in her electorate office in October 2024 while serving as Sports and Aged Care Minister – despite a similar facility already being available about a 20-minute drive away.

The Opposition has also raised questions about why taxpayers funded seven trips to Canberra for Mr McCarthy, given he works for Suncorp Group as a government affairs manager – a role the company describes as ‘leading engagement with key government stakeholders’.

Liberal Senator Sarah Henderson said: ‘This is a Minister who has shown a constant disregard for taxpayers’ money since the moment she became a minister and has failed to answer serious questions about her abuse of family travel entitlements.’

‘Regardless of the way Labor try to spin and bury this one… between her lobbyist husband flying around on the taxpayer dime or Air Miles Anika conducting a meeting at a boozy birthday bash, in no circumstance does this pass the pub test.’

A spokesman for Wells said that Mr McCarthy travelled as the minister’s spouse in accordance with the rules.

‘During those times he did not undertake any work for his employer,’ he added.

Under the Parliamentary Business Resources framework, MPs and ministers can claim expenses for travel, accommodation and family reunion travel – but only if the spending is primarily for ‘parliamentary business’.

Ministers can claim certain family travel costs if the trip is considered necessary to support ‘family life’ while carrying out parliamentary duties.

Trips involving official events, parliamentary sittings, stakeholder meetings or ministerial duties can qualify under the rules.