Pauline Hanson has been accused of repeatedly failing to declare gifts from Australia's richest person, Gina Rinehart, including five undeclared flights in under six months. The One Nation leader, who prides herself on being 'upfront and honest', has concealed the extent of Rinehart's support, raising questions about conflicts of interest.
In October last year, Hanson attended an event in Geelong honouring Rinehart's generosity to a private agricultural college. She arrived via a chartered aircraft billed to taxpayers at $9,000, claiming it was the cheapest option. Later, she hastily updated her register of interests to declare a gifted jet ride from Melbourne to Sydney after being questioned.
A week later, Hanson and her chief of staff, James Ashby, flew to Florida on Rinehart's private jet for the Conservative Political Action Conference, where they partied with Donald Trump at Mar-a-Lago and stayed in Rinehart's Palm Beach mansion. This trip was not properly declared within the required 35 days. Ashby blamed an 'administrative error', saying he submitted the wrong paperwork.
Further questions from the Guardian revealed three more undeclared flights gifted through Rinehart's beef company, S Kidman and Co, last year. The party updated the register along with flights provided for the South Australian election campaign, where state laws ban political donations.
Hanson's failure to comply with Senate disclosure rules, which require declaration of gifts within 35 days, is a potential serious contempt of the Senate. Only one senator has previously been referred to the privileges committee for such failures, in 2005.
