{"id":641419,"date":"2026-04-30T21:58:08","date_gmt":"2026-04-30T21:58:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/641419\/"},"modified":"2026-04-30T21:58:08","modified_gmt":"2026-04-30T21:58:08","slug":"has-gina-rinehart-bought-one-nation-pauline-hanson-has-the-billionaires-backing-and-shes-super-happy-one-nation","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/641419\/","title":{"rendered":"Has Gina Rinehart \u2018bought\u2019 One Nation? Pauline Hanson has the billionaire\u2019s backing \u2013 and she\u2019s super happy | One Nation"},"content":{"rendered":"

Last November, when Pauline Hanson<\/a> cooked a steak for Barnaby Joyce in her parliamentary office, barely anyone raised an eyebrow that the wagyu on the menu was from 2GR \u2013 Gina Rinehart\u2019s beef company.<\/p>\n

Umami-rich marbled beef from the brand, named after Australia\u2019s richest person and her daughter Ginia, retails at more than $100 a kilogram. It is more at home in the world\u2019s high-end restaurants than in a sandwich press.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

But its presence in Hanson\u2019s office as part of a carefully curated media stunt showed that Rinehart was already playing a part in One Nation\u2019s expansionist push, which has been gathering pace over the past six months.<\/p>\n

Soon after the dinner, Joyce \u2013 who is one of Rinehart\u2019s most loyal friends in the Australian parliament \u2013 announced his defection from the Nationals to One Nation, confirming his move on radio in Tamworth in early December on \u201cMacca\u2019s\u201d 88.9FM breakfast program.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think I almost had to declare those steaks \u2013 I didn\u2019t realise they were wagyu, they were very, very nice,\u201d Joyce joked.<\/p>\n

Looking up to make eye contact with the studio camera, Hanson piped up as if in a commercial: \u201c2GR! 2GR!\u201d<\/p>\n

Hanson sports a Kidman shirt at a March for Australia rally in Brisbane on 26 January. Photograph: Darren England\/AAP<\/p>\n

In the clip, an impeccably made-up Hanson is wearing a blue-and-white check shirt branded S Kidman and Co \u2013 another of Rinehart\u2019s companies. And later that day she boarded<\/a> the S Kidman and Co private aircraft to hitch a ride home to Brisbane alongside her fellow NSW One Nation senator Sean Bell.<\/p>\n

The flight was not declared in line with Senate rules until many months later, after the Guardian had contacted Hanson\u2019s office asking about her travel arrangements that day.<\/p>\n

TimelineThe Hanson-Rinehart relationshipShow<\/p>\n

January 2025<\/p>\n

Gina Rinehart and Pauline Hanson are seen dining together in Thailand, alongside the former Liberal vice-president Teena McQueen<\/p>\n

24 August 2025<\/p>\n

Hanson flies on S Kidman and Co Pilatus aircraft from Archerfield to Toowoomba for News Corp\u2019s bush summit, sponsored by Hancock Prospecting \u2013 undeclared until March 2026<\/p>\n

25 August 2025<\/p>\n

Hanson flies on S Kidman and Co Pilatus aircraft from Toowoomba to Canberra \u2013 undeclared until March 2026<\/p>\n

19 October 2025<\/p>\n

Hanson bills taxpayers almost $9,000 to travel from Tamworth to Avalon in a private charter to attend an event at Marcus Oldham College celebrating a Rinehart donation. Hanson then flies on Rinehart\u2019s luxury Gulfstream G700 private jet from Melbourne to Sydney \u2013 undeclared until February 2026<\/p>\n

26 October 2025<\/p>\n

Hanson and her chief of staff, James Ashby, fly from Brisbane to Florida for the Conservative Political Action Conference on Rinehart\u2019s Gulfstream G700 \u2013 incorrectly declared on 16 December, remained undeclared until 30 December.<\/p>\n

October 2025<\/p>\n

Hanson claims $2,000 in taxpayer-funded flights to connect with the Florida flights<\/p>\n

27 October 2025 – 11 November 2025<\/p>\n

Hanson and Ashby stay at Rinehart\u2019s $66m Palm Beach mansion \u2013 incorrectly declared on 16 December, remained undeclared until 30 December<\/p>\n

8 December 2025<\/p>\n

Hanson and fellow One Nation senator Sean Bell fly on S Kidman and Co aircraft from Tamworth to Brisbane after Barnaby Joyce\u2019s defection \u2013 undeclared until March 2026<\/p>\n

2025<\/p>\n

Rinehart hosts fund managers onboard the cruise ship The World, directing donations worth more than $300,000 to One Nation in exchange for dinner with Donald Trump at Mar-a-Lago<\/p>\n

10 January 2026<\/p>\n

Hanson and Joyce fly from Sunshine Coast to Mount Isa on Rinehart\u2019s Gulfstream G700 to tour flood-hit communities<\/p>\n

2026<\/p>\n

Rinehart nominates Hanson\u2019s daughter, Lee Hanson, to represent her at the Australian Rowing Championships where she presents the inaugural Gina Rinehart AO Trophy<\/p>\n

14 March 2026<\/p>\n

\u00a0Hanson flies to Adelaide on an S Kidman and Co aircraft for South Australian election campaign<\/p>\n

15 March 2026 – 17 March 2026<\/p>\n

Hanson and Cory Bernardi, One Nation\u2019s lead Legislative Council candidate for South Australia, fly on S Kidman and Co aircraft to visit Mount Gambier, Maitland and Coober Pedy \u2013 later repaid by Bernardi given a potential breach of SA electoral laws<\/p>\n

26 March 2026<\/p>\n

Rinehart hosts One Nation donors at a dinner at Mar-a-Lago with Donald Trump<\/p>\n

29 April 2026<\/p>\n

Hanson announces that Rinehart associates have donated a new aircraft worth more than $1.5m to One Nation, alongside donations worth $2m<\/p>\n

Thank you for your feedback.<\/p>\n

The Guardian revealed that multiple flights had been gifted to Hanson by the billionaire and not properly declared, in breach of Senate rules that require the declaration of gifts worth more than $300 within 35 days.<\/p>\n

In total, five flights were concealed<\/a> over the course of nine months.<\/p>\n

The flights \u2013 some taken on Rinehart\u2019s luxury Gulfstream G700 \u2013 included a return trip<\/a> to Florida to attend the Conservative Political Action Conference and events at Donald Trump\u2019s Mar-a-Lago resort.<\/p>\n

While Hanson and Rinehart have been friends for some time \u2013 they were pictured dining together in Thailand in early 2025 \u2013 it appears that visiting the US together gave them the opportunity to fortify their political alliance, cementing Rinehart\u2019s support for the resurgent One Nation.<\/p>\n

Rinehart took Hanson to Mar-a-Lago where she met the UK Reform leader, Nigel Farage, whom Hanson praised<\/a> as a \u201cfriend\u201d and \u201ctrue champion\u201d.<\/p>\n

The One Nation leader also took part in CPAC\u2019s exclusive Circle Retreat and Gala, described as a \u201cpremier gathering for the biggest leaders in the conservative movement in America and from around the world\u201d.<\/p>\n

After the trip, Rinehart stepped up her support for Hanson, hosting political fundraisers, including onboard the luxury cruise ship The World, on which she owns an apartment.<\/p>\n

The One Nation leader shows off her \u2018sexy\u2019 new plane in a Facebook post.<\/p>\n

At the same time the billionaire began signalling her shift in support away from the Liberals, whom she had backed under Peter Dutton, with one of her closest allies, the corporate executive Adam Giles<\/a>, revealing that he was now backing One Nation and \u201cwas encouraging my friends to be donating all they can\u201d.<\/p>\n

Sign up for the Breaking News Australia email<\/a><\/p>\n

\u201cThey are fighting for our country, with a long-term track record, in trying to get Australia back on track, get our culture and values back and get our country back,\u201d he told the Weekly Times<\/a> in December. Giles, the former Northern Territory chief minister, quit the Nationals<\/a> after he was questioned about his backing for Hanson\u2019s party.<\/p>\n

\u2018Yes it\u2019s amazing. Yes it\u2019s going to annoy the Guardian\u2019: Hanson\u2019s post to X about the plane. <\/p>\n

At an event she hosted in December, Rinehart auctioned off a bejewelled Trump handbag and dinner with the US president at Mar-a-Lago for $300,000, convincing three former Liberal donors to switch their support to One Nation.<\/p>\n

The Guardian can reveal that two of the fund managers \u2013 Ben Cleary and Doug Tynan \u2013 met Trump with Rinehart at Mar-a-Lago in March, three weeks after the US and Israel launched airstrikes against Iran. Hanson was in South Australia for the state election on the night the dinner took place.<\/p>\n

Despite Rinehart\u2019s clear support, Hanson and her chief of staff, James Ashby, downplayed Rinehart\u2019s connections to the party. Ashby told the Nine Newspapers after the Bondi massacre in December: \u201cI haven\u2019t seen any money from her.\u201d Hanson, at a heated press conference in February, said: \u201cIf you are going to try to say that I am being funded by Gina Rinehart<\/a>, the answer is no.\u201d<\/p>\n

But after seeking to minimise the extent of Rinehart\u2019s support, Hanson is now openly gloating about her backing by Australia\u2019s richest person.<\/p>\n

On Wednesday, in a Trump-like social media post, Hanson took to taunting the Guardian about the latest gift from her benefactor \u2013 a brand-new Cirrus SR22 G7 plane that costs up to $2m.<\/p>\n

\u201cBREAKING NEWS \u2013 I\u2019ve got a new plane, Sarah,\u201d Hanson said in the post, directed at this journalist.<\/p>\n

\u201cYes it was donated. Yes I\u2019m super happy. Yes it\u2019s fast. Yes it\u2019s amazing. Yes it\u2019s going to annoy the Guardian. Yes it means I can visit more regional towns across the country more often. Yes it\u2019s a Cirrus G7. Yes it\u2019s sexy. Yes I have a pilot.\u201d<\/p>\n

The pilot may prove to be Ashby, who has a recreational pilot\u2019s licence \u2013 though the Australian Financial Review reported last month that he had failed a routine aviation exam<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Hanson unveiled the plane at an aircraft hangar in Rockhampton at an event hosted by Giles, who is an S Kidman and Co executive.<\/p>\n

There she was again dressed in a Kidman shirt and was pictured in front of what appeared to be a pie-warmer full of Kidman meat pies. Hanson owns at least half a dozen Kidman and Co shirts that she now wears on high rotation. Joyce, too, sports a custom-made $500 Kidman and Co hat, ditching his trademark Akubra after Rinehart gave him the new headwear in 2024.<\/p>\n

Barnaby Joyce boards Rinehart\u2019s Gulfstream G700. Photograph: Mount Isa Aviation<\/p>\n

Two of Rinehart\u2019s closest corporate lieutenants, Giles and the known climate-sceptic Ian Plimer<\/a>, presented One Nation with two giant novelty cheques, with a third coming from one of Rinehart\u2019s \u201cclose friends\u201d, the stockbroker Angus Aitken, and his wife, Sarah.<\/p>\n

The novelty cheques are a gimmick favoured by Rinehart, most infamously when she gave<\/a> Joyce $40,000 in 2017. He was later forced to return it amid a backlash.<\/p>\n

Giles and Plimer have worked for Rinehart for many years but many have questioned how each of them would have a spare $500,000 to donate to the party, asking whether this was a donation by proxy on Rinehart\u2019s behalf.<\/p>\n

Hanson also announced last month that Giles had \u201cpersonally\u201d given One Nation a new car.<\/p>\n

The Guardian asked Hancock Prospecting if Rinehart or Hancock Prospecting had made any financial contribution towards the donations but the company declined to answer.<\/p>\n

double quotation markThis is a purchase of a political party in Australia and it is done in a way to absolutely dominate and influence a partyAnthony Whealy, Centre for Public Integrity <\/p>\n

The slick social media video that accompanied the announcement suggests Hanson is no longer afraid of parading her party\u2019s new cashed-up status as it seeks to take on Labor and the Coalition.<\/p>\n

There are many questions about the extent of Rinehart\u2019s involvement in the party\u2019s expansion plans. Will she be personally involved in choosing potential candidates for the party across the country? Or is her support confined to providing the corporate support needed to go mainstream?<\/p>\n

Australia\u2019s political fundraising laws will be tightened in July and in December, with Hanson saying on Wednesday: \u201cWe have a lot of additional fundraising to undertake between now and the cut-off in December.\u201d<\/p>\n

But the Centre for Public Integrity chair, Anthony Whealy, said the revelations of Rinehart\u2019s patronage of One Nation exposed the \u201cstate of absolute chaos\u201d of Australia\u2019s electoral laws.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe net result has been that very wealthy companies and people have been able to donate large sums of money to get access, and once they get access they use that to get influence,\u201d Whealy said.<\/p>\n

\u201c[Rinehart] is entitled to do whatever she likes with her money but she is not allowed to own a party, and that is what this amounts to; this is a purchase of a political party in Australia and it is done in a way to absolutely dominate and influence a party.<\/p>\n

\u201cOne Nation\u2019s ownership by Gina Rinehart<\/a> and her friends is a very uneasy alliance for Australia because the views of One Nation, now emboldened by this colossal gift of money \u2013 and no doubt more will be coming \u2013 does not augur well for the preservation of what I would describe as true Australian values: kindness, fairness, equality, tolerance and genuine concern for others.\u201d<\/p>\n

Whealy added that under Australia\u2019s electoral laws it would \u201cbe very easy to mask\u201d a donation through a third party, while he also criticised the lack of transparency surrounding fundraisers.<\/p>\n

This week the treasurer, Jim Chalmers<\/a>, declared Hanson to be a \u201cwholly owned subsidiary of Gina Rinehart\u201d, warning of Rinehart\u2019s well-known \u201cagenda\u201d:<\/p>\n

\u201cShe\u2019s flagged things like getting rid of the minimum wage and all of these sorts of things, and I think pretty frequently we see One Nation dance to Gina Rinehart\u2019s tune.\u201d<\/p>\n

Giles told the assembled crowd in Rockhampton that Hancock Prospecting was there \u201cproviding the wings\u201d for the One Nation movement. And, he declared: \u201cThe journey has only just begun.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Last November, when Pauline Hanson cooked a steak for Barnaby Joyce in her parliamentary office, barely anyone raised…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":641420,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[64,63,44],"class_list":["post-641419","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-australia","tag-au","tag-australia","tag-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/641419","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=641419"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/641419\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/641420"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=641419"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=641419"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=641419"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}