Australia’s major political parties received over $2 million in donations from three of the country’s wealthiest billionaires last year.
Billionaire packing giant Anthony Pratt, chairman of Pratt Industries and Visy, was Labor’s largest individual benefactor in the previous financial year after donating $1 million to the ALP.
Pratt’s donation was the biggest among either party for the 2023-24 period, while the Liberal Party’s largest donor was Meriton Properties, which donated $590,000 across the federal, NSW and Victorian Liberal party branches.
Meriton Properties is owned by billionaire real estate developer Harry Triguboff.
The Coalition was also handed $500,000 from mining billionaire Gina Rinehart, who became the party’s second-biggest donor through donations made to multiple party accounts via her company Hancock Prospecting.
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All up, Labor received $1.3 million in reportable donations while the Coalition lagged only slightly behind at $1.2 million.
The Nationals were given around $1 million in donations.
Labor and the ALP weren’t the only parties to enjoy six-figure donations over the period.
The Greens were given a total of $575,000 across various branches from famous Gold Coast gambler and mathematician Duncan Turpie.
Teal-backer Robert Keldoulis and his investment firm Keldoulis Investments Pty Limited gave the biggest donation of the year, with a cool $1.1 million donated to Climate 200 during the financial year.
Meanwhile, the largest individual donor for Pauline Hanson’s One Nation was stockbroker Angus Aitken, who gave $50,000.
Aitken also gave $230,000 to Liberal Party vehicles.
The AEC receipts also include public funding and other payments which aren’t donations.
The Coalition took in $11 million worth of receipts during the 2023-24 period, while Labor raked in just over $15 million.
