One Nation received Hancock aircraft weeks before gas policy reversal
Pauline Hanson’s One Nation party abandoned its support for Australia’s east coast gas reservation policy in June, months after Hanson moved a Senate motion in March backing the same measure. The reversal drew accusations from senior government and opposition figures that the change benefits Gina Rinehart, the mining billionaire whose Hancock Prospecting owns 49 percent of Senex, a company that has lobbied against the reservation plan.
The reservation policy, announced by the Albanese government, would require gas exporters to supply a portion of the gas they produce to the domestic market. The government described the policy as aimed at “modestly” supplying the domestic market to put downward pressure on consumer prices. The Greens are pushing an alternative — a 25 percent gas export tax — while the federal opposition is considering whether to support the reservation proposal.
Hanson moved her March motion supporting a domestic gas reserve with the argument that it would “increase the supply of gas and lower the price of electricity directly.” By June, One Nation had reversed course, unveiling its gas plans after what it described as “consultation with industry and stakeholders” and warning that the reservation policy risked “killing domestic Australian gas companies.”
In its June policy statement, One Nation said: “One Nation has previously considered an East Coast gas reservation policy. However, through consultation with industry and stakeholders, it became clear that it fell short of our policy objectives. The government’s 20% reservation policy will damage onshore development of oil and gas projects.” The party argued its preferred approach — encouraging joint ventures between government and industry — was “effectively removing the need for a reservation policy that risks distorting the market.”
Senex, the company at the center of the dispute, is jointly owned by Rinehart’s Hancock Prospecting, which holds 49 percent, and the Korean company POSCO, which holds 51 percent. Senex is valued at about $900 million. A spokesperson for Senex said the company and other businesses “engage with all sides of politics to inform policy development and help improve living standards for Australians.”
One Nation’s financial disclosures show the party received a new aircraft worth up to $2 million from Hancock Prospecting and $1 million in donations from two of Rinehart’s closest associates in April — weeks before it abandoned the reservation policy.
Resources minister Madeleine King said One Nation’s reversal suggested the party had been swayed by industry. “One Nation was hoping nobody would notice they had abandoned any form of gas reservation policy,” King said. “One Nation claims to support Aussie families but the truth is they are always on the side of their big business backers.”
The opposition’s spokesperson for energy affordability and security, Garth Hamilton, accused One Nation of acting in the interests of its donor. “This policy backflip must be for the benefit of her donors, because it is not for the benefit of the Australian people,” Hamilton said. He said One Nation had “dramatically” changed its position to one that benefited Senex and Rinehart.
The dispute spilled into a June Senate estimates hearing, where One Nation senator Tyron Whitten asked departmental officials about the reservation policy, saying the party had “heard from industry that the oversupply model is going to make onshore exploration and development almost impossible economically.” Greens senator Steph Hodgins-May challenged Whitten for “asking questions on behalf of Senex, which is co-owned by Gina Rinehart.” Whitten responded: “I can’t be asking questions on behalf of Gina Rinehart. I’ve never met the lady.”
Social services minister Tanya Plibersek also attacked One Nation’s position after revelations in the Guardian’s podcast The Populist about Barnaby Joyce and Pauline Hanson staying overnight at Rinehart’s Brisbane mansion. Plibersek accused One Nation of “just doing Gina Rinehart’s bidding.” “We’ve seen now that Barnaby’s having sleepovers at Gina’s, he’s being flown around the country in the private jet because he’s doing her bidding,” Plibersek said. “She’s more than just a friend. She is One Nation’s biggest donor. So, when it comes to same jobs, same pay, making sure people who work in mining, for example, get paid the same, she says no. Gina says no. So One Nation says no.” She added: “When it comes to attacking Andrew Hastie, Gina doesn’t like him. So One Nation doesn’t like him. They attack Andrew Hastie.”
The Guardian’s reporting on Hanson’s gas policy and One Nation’s relationship with Rinehart is detailed in a new podcast series, “The Populist.” Rinehart and former Liberal leader Peter Dutton had a disagreement in the lead-up to the most recent federal election over the Liberal party’s plan for an east coast gas reservation policy.