After initially downplaying the extent of Gina Rinehart’s support, Pauline Hanson is now openly gloating about how Australia’s richest person is backing One Nation. The rapidly expanding party is reaping the bounty of the billionaire, from luxury flights and Kidman-branded attire to steak dinners and meat pies.
Last November, when Hanson cooked a steak for Barnaby Joyce in her parliamentary office, few raised an eyebrow that the wagyu was from 2GR, Rinehart’s beef company. The umami-rich marbled beef, retailing at over $100 per kilogram, is more at home in high-end restaurants than a sandwich press. Its presence in Hanson’s office as part of a media stunt showed that Rinehart was already playing a part in One Nation’s expansionist push.
Soon after the dinner, Joyce, a loyal friend of Rinehart in parliament, announced his defection from the Nationals to One Nation. Hanson wore a blue-and-white check shirt branded S Kidman and Co, another Rinehart company, and later boarded the S Kidman and Co private aircraft to return to Brisbane. The flight was not declared in line with Senate rules until months later, after Guardian inquiries.
The Guardian revealed that multiple flights had been gifted to Hanson by Rinehart and not properly declared, breaching Senate rules requiring declaration of gifts worth over $300 within 35 days. In total, five flights were concealed over nine months, including on Rinehart’s luxury Gulfstream G700 to Florida for the Conservative Political Action Conference and events at Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago resort.
Hanson and Rinehart have been friends for some time, but visiting the US together fortified their political alliance. Rinehart took Hanson to Mar-a-Lago, where she met UK Reform leader Nigel Farage. After the trip, Rinehart stepped up support, hosting fundraisers on the luxury cruise ship The World, where she owns an apartment.
At a December event, Rinehart auctioned a bejewelled Trump handbag and dinner with Trump for $300,000, convincing three former Liberal donors to switch to One Nation. Two fund managers met Trump with Rinehart at Mar-a-Lago in March. Despite clear support, Hanson and her chief of staff James Ashby downplayed Rinehart’s connections. Ashby told Nine Newspapers: “I haven’t seen any money from her.” Hanson said: “If you are going to try to say that I am being funded by Gina Rinehart, the answer is no.”
But now Hanson openly gloats about the backing. On Wednesday, in a Trump-like social media post, she taunted the Guardian about a new Cirrus SR22 G7 plane worth up to $2 million. “BREAKING NEWS – I’ve got a new plane, Sarah. Yes it was donated. Yes I’m super happy. Yes it’s fast. Yes it’s amazing. Yes it’s going to annoy the Guardian. Yes it means I can visit more regional towns. Yes it’s a Cirrus G7. Yes it’s sexy. Yes I have a pilot.”
Hanson unveiled the plane at a Rockhampton hangar hosted by Adam Giles, an S Kidman and Co executive. She wore a Kidman shirt and posed near a pie-warmer full of Kidman meat pies. Two of Rinehart’s lieutenants presented giant novelty cheques to One Nation, with a third from stockbroker Angus Aitken. The cheques are a gimmick Rinehart favoured, notably when she gave Joyce $40,000 in 2017, which he later returned.
Hanson also announced Giles had “personally” given One Nation a new car. Hancock Prospecting declined to answer whether Rinehart contributed to the donations. The slick social media video suggests Hanson is no longer afraid to parade the party’s cashed-up status.
Many questions remain about Rinehart’s involvement in One Nation’s expansion. Will she choose candidates? Or is her support limited to corporate backing? Australia’s political fundraising laws will tighten in July and December. Hanson said: “We have a lot of additional fundraising to undertake between now and the cut-off.”
Anthony Whealy, chair of the Centre for Public Integrity, said the revelations expose “state of absolute chaos” in electoral laws. “Very wealthy companies and people have been able to donate large sums to get access and influence. Rinehart is entitled to do what she likes with her money but she is not allowed to own a party, and that is what this amounts to – a purchase of a political party.” He added that views of One Nation, emboldened by the colossal gift, “does not augur well for true Australian values: kindness, fairness, equality, tolerance and genuine concern for others.”
Treasurer Jim Chalmers declared Hanson a “wholly owned subsidiary of Gina Rinehart”, warning of Rinehart’s agenda: “She’s flagged things like getting rid of the minimum wage. We frequently see One Nation dance to Gina Rinehart’s tune.” Giles told the Rockhampton crowd that Hancock Prospecting was “providing the wings” for One Nation, and declared: “The journey has only just begun.”
