One Nation has undertaken a restructure that solidifies the power of federal leader, Pauline Hanson, and her chief of staff, James Ashby, making them president and secretary of a new incorporated entity.

The restructure, completed late last year, creates a host of legal consequences including giving members of the party new rights under Queensland legislation to ask for financial records or enforce the party’s rules and natural justice requirements in court.

On Tuesday Labor’s Murray Watt and the activist group GetUp have announced they will write to the Australian Electoral Commission asking it to investigate allegations that Ashby received funds he used to purchase a plane to ferry Hanson around Queensland without declaring the donation.

One Nation is being investigated by the Australian Electoral Commission, which party treasurer, Greg Smith, has said is a normal across-the-board compliance audit which is conducted on all political parties.

On Monday, Four Corners reported that it had confirmed that a Jabiru light plane used by Ashby was insured in his name in 2015.

Former party treasurer, Ian Nelson, said the primary purpose of the plane is “to ferry Pauline Hanson around” despite being listed on the insurance form as for “business”.

Nelson said that in March 2015 Ashby told the One Nation donor Bill McNee that, since he was a pilot, he needed a plane to fly Hanson around, and McNee agreed.

“As it turns out, Bill McNee didn’t buy the plane but, as I understand, he transferred the money to James Ashby, not the party, not Pauline, but James Ashby,” Nelson said.

McNee denied funding the purchase of the plane, saying he had not funded the party beyond what was publicly disclosed.

Watt’s complaint to the AEC notes that a Jabiru light aircraft can cost more than $100,000 and the alleged failure to declare the funds to buy it may amount to a breach of the Commonwealth Electoral Act.

He urged the AEC to investigate the plane, and an allegation by Nelson that Ashby asked him to declare that donations received from McNee totalling $70,000 were received from an “anonymous” donor instead of correctly registering them as donations from McNee.

“Commonwealth electoral law is clear – donating money or something in kind like the use of the plane has to be declared if it exceeds the threshold,” Watt said.

On Monday GetUp’s national director, Paul Oosting, said that donations over $1,000 needed to be disclosed.





Ashby told Guardian Australia the hours flown for party business on his aircraft had been declared in accordance with the AEC rules.

“The AEC are welcome to review the party’s returns whenever they see fit,” he said.

Responding to the Four Corners program, Queensland leader Steve Dickson told Sky News on Tuesday that One Nation “declares everything we have to the Queensland Electoral Commission; we all play by the rules”.

“I can’t give you all the details about how James [Ashby] has come by his plane, if he’s bought it personally or if it’s been part of some sort of a donation,” Dickson said.

A spokeswoman for the special minister of state, Scott Ryan, said he had spoken to the AEC’s commissioner since the Four Corners program went to air.

“They will have a further conversation in coming days.”





The restructure of the party is outlined in a Queensland Department of Fair Trading extract, seen by Guardian Australia, that shows One Nation Queensland Division Inc was registered on 16 November 2016 with the principal activity “to operate a political party”.

On the same date Hanson became president, Ashby became secretary and “Greg Ashby” – believed to be an incorrect reference to Hanson’s brother-in-law, Greg Smith – became treasurer.

The Australian Business Register shows that One Nation Queensland Division added “Inc” to its name on 28 February 2017.

The restructure could see members gain new rights in disputes with the party, because the Queensland Associations Incorporation Act allows members to:

Demand financial records (section 59C)

Enforce the party’s rules in the Supreme Court (section 71), including a right to “natural justice” when the party adjudicates members’ rights.

Various candidates have complained about a lack of due process in the party, including disendorsements of candidates for social media comments without evidence of meetings to formally make the decision.

Earlier searches of the business register as late as 1 March suggested One Nation Queensland Division was an unincorporated entity that was not registered for GST, leading to questions by Labor in Senate estimates on that date about why the party was collecting GST.

Smith told Guardian Australia at that time the party was registered to collect GST, and had been since it incorporated in late 2016. The changes, including that the party was registered to collect GST, were reflected on the register soon after.