Greg Combet took partner Juanita Phillips on first-class trip to Europe Greg Combet and Juanita Phillips. CLIMATE Change Minister Greg Combet took his ABC newsreader partner Juanita Phillips on a first-class visit to Europe, amid signs of an increase in global travel by Gillard Government frontbenchers. The taxpayer-funded trip earlier this month included visits to Paris, Brussels and Berlin where Mr Combet - touted as a future Labor leader - delivered a keynote address to the "Towards a Global Carbon Market" conference. Mr Combet said the trip met ministerial rules for travelling with spouses. These require the minister's partner to have an "official program of engagements." He declined to confirm to News Limited what program Ms Phillips - who presents the ABC's flagship 7pm television news service in Sydney - undertook. The minister also would not disclose why they flew first class. The guidelines state "ministers and their spouses should travel business class" when travelling overseas, but they may have received a free upgrade. A first-class airfare to Paris costs between $12,000-15,000 and the carbon footprint - around 5 tonnes of CO2 - is enough to power a small car for a year. "Approval for Minister Combet's and Ms Phillips's overseas visit on official business was in accord with the guidelines relating to such visits," his spokesman said. Any suggestion to the contrary would be wrong and misleading. Prime Minister Julia Gillard is required to tick off on all overseas travel by her front bench. Asked about Mr Combet and Ms Phillips' trip, a spokesman said: "All overseas ministerial travel is approved in accordance with the guidelines." Former prime minister Kevin Rudd in 2009 tightened rules on ministers taking their spouses overseas and Tony Abbott is vowing to a crack down he wins office. "If elected to government we will ensure that overseas travel is strictly for official purposes, and that for ministers spousal travel will be the exception, not the rule," the Opposition leader told News Limited. The relationship of Mr Combet, a former ACTU secretary, and Ms Phillips was revealed last September but the Cabinet minister and the glamorous broadcaster have been reluctant to step out together in public. The Coalition and the ABC have enjoyed a rocky relationship over the years. A spokesperson for the ABC said Ms Phillips informed the national broadcaster that "she was on annual leave at the time" of the Europe trip and travelling in a personal capacity. "People have private lives and we handle these matters on a case by case basis," the spokesperson said. With parliament in recess, a number of frontbenchers are travelling overseas including Home Affairs and Justice Minister Jason Clare, Treasurer Wayne Swan and Bernie Ripoll, his parliamentary secretary, who this week travelled to Chicago to participate in a panel titled "What are international challenges to improving financial literacy and capabilities for women?." Other speakers on the panel included the Governor of the State Bank of Pakistan and Governor of the Bank of Botswana. Mr Ripoll also held several bilateral meetings in the US city before flying back to Australia. Assistant Treasurer David Bradbury has also defended a visit he made to the United States in January with his wife. The Labor MP and his wife stopped over in Hawaii for two days on the return flight from the US - where he attended the West Coast Leadership Dialogue - but Mr Bradbury has told News Limited that he only flew via Honolulu because it was "the cheapest flight available at the time." Mr Bradbury's office said the minister flew economy and that "all costs associated with travel by Mr Bradbury's spouse were met privately."