A special report in yesterday's The Age newspaper revealed that former Tasmanian senator - and minister in the Hawke and Keating Labor governments - Michael Tate took more than 300 flights over the past seven and a half years at a total cost of just over $100,000.

However, this was offset slightly by 11 flights that he had taken using frequent flyer points, saving just over $6000.

Some former politicians contacted by The Examiner are checking the record to see whether certain trips - with multiple stopovers - were recorded as one flight or several.

Taxpayers footed the bill for nearly $740,000 worth of flights for former federal Tasmanian MPs between January 2001 and June 2008 under the Life Gold Pass scheme.

Former Tasmanian Liberal senator Michael Townley, who began his 17-year parliamentary career as an independent senator before joining the Liberal Party, cost taxpayers more than $90,000 for nearly 270 flights.

Former Liberal MP Peter Rae clocked up 240 flights at a total cost of more than $70,000, while former Liberal senator Jocelyn Newman and former Labor senator John Coates both claimed travel worth nearly $68,000 each.

Michael Tate, now a Catholic priest in Southern Tasmania, said that his taxpayer-funded travel over the past seven-and-a-half years had been conducted in accordance with the terms of the entitlement.

"I don't see it necessary to comment," he said.

"It's an entitlement and I have used it strictly within the terms of the entitlement - not for business purposes."

Former Tasmanian Liberal MHRs Bruce Goodluck and Max Burr clocked up in excess of $50,000 in travel costs under the Life Gold Pass scheme.

Bass Labor MHA - and former MHR - Michelle O'Byrne, who also used the Life Gold Pass for some taxpayer-funded flights, said that her travel was all done in accordance with the entitlements, but said the scheme should be reviewed.

"Given the difficult economic times we are now facing, I strongly believe that it would be in the best interests of Australian taxpayers that a review of these entitlements occur," she said.