Many happen to be closely aligned to Mr Robert’s former political fundraising venture, the Fadden Forum. In some cases it is also not entirely clear why membership of a group aimed at the "advancement of trade, investment, public policy and cultural understanding" between Australia and 22 Spanish- and Portuguese-speaking nations would be a benefit to the Queensland businesses. So what exactly is the Australian Ibero-American Business Council and what role does Mr Robert play in its operations? According to its website, the council is a "not for profit, apolitical" organisation that "provides private and public sector leaders with a platform to engage in high-level dialogue on mutually beneficial economic and public policy issues". (L-R) John Margerison, AIABC founding director, former PM Malcolm Turnbull, and AIABC board member Shaun Cartwright at the council's federal budget leaders event. Credit:AIABC website Transnational peak corporate groups are not uncommon – the Australia-Latin America Business Council has been running since 1989 and lists BHP, Austrade and Air New Zealand among its members – but few are as politically connected.

The organisation has proven itself adept at attracting big names to its events, with former prime minister Malcolm Turnbull, then treasurer Scott Morrison and Labor frontbencher Anthony Albanese pictured at functions on its website. The AIABC’s political associations have raised concerns about corporate influence-peddling within politics and potential "astroturfing", where something that sounds like a grassroots community organisation is actually established by, and for, corporate interests. A Fairfax Media investigation has tracked the links between Mr Robert, the Liberal National Party member for Fadden on the Gold Coast, and his corporate supporters from the Fadden Forum to the AIABC. Never far from controversy Mr Robert has proven himself very good at raising money for Queensland’s LNP. But it has also got him into plenty of strife. In an unrelated but recent controversy, Mr Robert had trouble connecting to the internet from his Gold Coast home, charging taxpayers up to $2800 a month, but his connections to political donors and Prime Minister Scott Morrison run deep.

In 2016, Mr Robert resigned from the Turnbull ministry after helping Liberal Party donor Paul Marks sign a deal in China – for a company in which they both held shares – while he was on personal leave. He was elevated back to the ministry in August this year. Australian Ibero-American Business Council launch event with Ibero-American ambassadors with Assistant Treasurer Stuart Robert (centre). Credit:AIABC website Mr Robert was Mr Morrison’s numbers man in the recent coup against Mr Turnbull and shared a home with him in Canberra. As the best LNP fundraiser in Queensland, Mr Robert has supported one donor by giving a speech in their favour in Parliament and lobbied the City of Gold Coast council on their behalf. Two people who were formerly on Mr Robert’s staff have been elected to political office recently – Kristyn Boulton to the Gold Coast council and Sam O’Connor to the Queensland Parliament. Mr Robert also bankrolled an unsuccessful campaign for another of his staff – Felicity Stevenson – to get elected to the Gold Coast council.

He used $60,000, raised via the Fadden Forum, to help Ms Stevenson and Ms Boulton campaign as independent candidates. The transactions were looked at as part of a broad inquiry into political corruption by the Queensland Crime and Corruption Commission. The CCC completely cleared Mr Robert, Ms Stevenson and Ms Boulton of any wrongdoing. In April this year, Mr Robert started a new venture by setting up and promoting the Australian Ibero-American Business Council. For its first five months it had three directors, including one listed as secretary – Mr Margerison, previously the longtime chairman of the LNP fundraising machine. (L-R) AIABC board member Shaun Cartwright, Prime Minister Scott Morrison, and John Margerison, AIABC founding director. Credit:AIABC website Mr Margerison, an entrepreneur and self-described "strategy expert", is the director of a Queensland-based conglomerate called the DJ Group which is a "major partner" of the council. DJ Group directors have connections to other members of the AIABC and its board. Mr Epstein, who replaced Mr Margerison on the board in early September, bought a stake in DJ Partners, another AIABC member, two months before he became chairman. Mr Margerison did not respond to requests for comment. Mr Epstein declined to comment.

The AIABC website says it "regularly hosts high level political, diplomatic and business functions and small intimate VIP business events across the country". (L-R) AIABC board member Shaun Cartwright, former foreign Minister Julie Bishop, and AIABC founding director John Margerison. Credit:AIABC website Dentists, eye doctors and property developers AIABC has 22 members listed on its website including Gold Coast-based tax lawyers, a dental group, a disability support services company, property developers and an ophthalmologist. The AIABC ranks are mostly filled by companies which in total have declared donations of more than $240,000 to the LNP in the past two years directly or via their owners.

Mr Robert says his time as chair of the Joint Standing Committee on Treaties - where he closed trade deals with South American countries - was the genesis for AIABC because there was "zero engagement at a serious government or diplomatic level" with South America. "So I went to some business guys [and] said we've got to build this and get it done properly," Mr Robert said. "And then encourage everyone to connect with the emerging market in terms of where we're going to go. "The two great emerging markets are South America and of course Africa." Mr Robert said John Margerison is a "very good friend" and denied Margerison was involved in fundraising at AIABC. "There's no fundraising involved [with AIABC], its board is bipartisan, it was a bipartisan launch connected to the parliamentary friends of Ibero America trade and commerce,” Mr Robert said.

"When I set it up I was the patron, to say hey 'I think this is a great idea and I'm going to get this thing up'. But as soon as I became a minister I resigned from that. "I don't have any role at all.” But Smiles Inclusive chief executive Mike Timoney, whose firm operates over 50 dental practices in Australia, said he had been to about five AIABC events this year and Stuart Robert was at them all. "I know Stuart and John [Margerison] from previous business relationships so I have been going to their forums for five or six years, [and] they invited me to join that one [AIABC]," Mr Timoney said. "We all sort of followed along [from the Fadden Forum] more people came in from the South America side and we carried on networking." Asked what benefit he would gain from AIABC membership, Mr Timoney said he employs a few Brazillian dentists. He added there's "a lot of opportunity coming out of South America in terms of their innovation".

"They [Brazil] deliver first world dentistry at third world prices," he said. The network of Mr Robert's business contacts seemingly intersects with those of AIABC and its members. For example, he is one of the largest investors in a private company - Centaur resources - that claims projects across South America that will yield "low-cost lithium". Mr Robert also declared ownership of a stake in Sequoia Financial, an under-the-radar wealth and asset manager which is another AIABC member, in his parliamentary interests. But he says the mention is wrong as he bid for a stake in Sequoia and was unsuccessful. Director of Scott PDI, a Queensland property development company, Peter Scott said he was offered a spot on the AIABC by Stuart Robert and "jumped" at the chance. "He's introduced, not only to us but other business people, business opportunities down there [in Latin America] and we jumped at it frankly," Mr Scott said.

The network of Mr Robert's business contacts seemingly intersects with those of the AIABC and its members. For example, he is one of the largest investors in a private company – Centaur Resources – that claims projects across South America that will yield "low-cost lithium". Central and South American nations listed as charter members of the AIABC said they supported the idea of more connections with Australia but did not pay to be members. Former ALP senator Stephen Conroy and Labor frontbencher Anthony Albanese are featured on the AIABC website but appeared to be unaware of the involvement of some LNP members. 'Didn't want to be rude'

Mr Albanese told Fairfax Media he had stumbled into the AIABC launch event by mistake after the leadership dialogue he was meant to be at changed venues. Mr Conroy recently joined the board of AIABC as an unpaid director and is yet to attend a board meeting. He declined to comment. Anthony Albanese speaking at the Australian Ibero American Business Council launch event at Parliament House. Credit:AIABC website University of NSW senior lecturer of international and political studies Belinda Edwards said the AIABC appeared to be a body that could be used to put its members in the driving seat for negotiating deals in South America. "This looks like an exercise in astroturfing, where business interests are trying to create what looks like a broad-based community organisation but actually they control it," Dr Edwards said.