The South Australian government is again refusing to say how much taxpayers forked out for a recent celebrity visit — this time, by England's former rugby captain and the daughter of Princess Anne.
Zara and Mike Tindall travelled to South Australia late last year and attended events and venues including the Adelaide 500 Supercars race weekend, the Star of Greece restaurant, and a state dinner.
They also visited the d'Arenberg Cube, which was last week the site of an exclusive taxpayer-funded concert by British singer Sam Smith.
While the SA government has said it cost "a lot less" than $1 million to bring Smith to Adelaide, it remained tight-lipped on an exact figure.
It has now also declined to say how much the pair were paid, instead describing the amount as commercial-in-confidence.
"Zara Tindall is a prominent member of the royal family and Mike Tindall has a social media reach of 586,000," a spokesperson said.
"They were in Australia working with other partners, which helped reduce the cost of bringing them to Adelaide."
During the trip, Mike Tindall posted photos on Instagram showing the couple at various venues, including at the Star of Greece, where they were pictured alongside former premier Mike Rann.
A lap on the Adelaide 500 track in a Corvette was followed by The Killers' after-race concert, Tindall wrote.
It was then "time for some wine tasting I reckon" which was in turn followed by "a state dinner that was wrapped up by" Australian rock legends Icehouse.
The SA government spokesperson said the couple generated other publicity during their time in Australia, including an interview on Channel Seven's Sunrise program.
"Collectively, the combined value of this exposure is worth hundreds of thousands of dollars and helped contribute towards a successful Adelaide 500," the spokesperson said.
"Zara Tindall was dressed by all South Australian designers for every appearance – Sally Phillips, Acler and Paolo Sebastian."
