Public servants have been banned from charging expenses on to government credit cards after one minister was found to have adopted some wild spending habits at the taxpayer’s expense.

An advanced review of a probe into his expenses obtained by the Daily Telegraph revealed that he had paid for expensive meals, posh home furniture and even private helicopter flights using credit cards handed out for emergency expenses.

The minister had tried to cover his tracks by ordering lower-level staff to pay to pick up the tab on his spending splurges using their government credit cards, the report also found.

“Ministerial and parliamentary services should be requested to review the practice of agencies issuing DLOs with credit cards, with a view to ceasing the practice,” the probe concluded.

However, it advised against taking further action against Mr Macdonald for his credit card spending spree.

Earlier this month, figures from the Reserve Bank of Australia showed that, rather than splashing out excessively on cheap credit cards in the December rush before Christmas, ordinary Aussies made record repayments on their credit cards.

Online comparison site Mozo can reveal that many zero per cent credit cards are imposing hefty repayment rates for those who fail to pay off balance transfers in the introductory period.

Exclusive research from Mozo has shown that while credit card heavyweights including NAB, Commonwealth and Westpac are offering attractive balance transfers on their credit card deals, many are hitting people with a sneaky balance transfer revert rate as high as 19.99 per cent.

Rohan Gamble, managing director of Mozo.com.au, commented: “Credit card balance transfer offers carry a huge sting in the tail for the unwary.

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Those looking to get on a firm financial footing are urged to compare credit cards.

Writing in Lifehacker’s weekly Loaded column, Angus Kidman points out that by searching around for a more competitive deal Aussies should be able to find that they can obtain a credit card that comes with a lower rate of interest or provides other benefits.

For those struggling under the weight of credit card debt, Mr Kidman advises people to do all they can to ensure they are not a victim of credit card fraud so that they are not “saddled with debt that isn’t yours”.

However, while Aussies may consider getting rid of all their credit cards as an ideal way to sort of their finances, keeping hold of one low rate credit card could be advisable as he states that plastic can prove to be of assistance while travelling.

Meanwhile, Chris Browne, director of Financial Design for Life, recently stated that those on high rate credit cards should use the money received from the government’s bail-out packaged to clear off their debts.

New figures show more women are addressing their credit cards as part of overall attempts to safeguard their own financial footing.

AAP reports that credit cards are an area of focus both in terms of spending less on plastic and clearing existing debts owed.

The results of the survey of 200 female consumers by Citi Fin-Q show that ten per cent more women are now budgeting strictly for their outgoings.

From a 2007 proportion of 18 per cent of women doing so, the figure has now reached 28 per cent, or more than one in four.

A similar increase has been seen in the proportion of women who are putting money aside on a daily basis.

From its 27 per cent level in 2007, this has since risen by ten percentage points to reach a current proportion of 37 per cent of all female consumers surveyed.

The news reflects previous figures reported by The Australian which showed that, during February, women made cutbacks on their spending reflected in lower expenditure on credit cards.

Low-rate credit cards can help consumers to beat debt even when lenders do not play fair, it has been claimed.

Financial guidance resource Money AU explains that cheap credit cards can become more expensive due to “negative payment hierarchy”.

This is where the cheapest debt is paid off first, leaving interest to accrue on the more expensive portion of the credit card balance.

However, careful use of low-rate credit cards is suggested as being able to overcome this problem for many consumers.

Readers are told that multiple cheap credit cards can be used to spread different forms of spending – one for balance transfers, another for new purchases, for instance.

This gives the borrower the chance to clear the most expensive debt first while leaving the cheapest until later.

Money AU recently advised borrowers to attempt to increase the credit limit on other cards if closing one account.

This is so that they continue to use the same proportion of the overall credit available to them and avoid any apparent negative trend on their credit history.