One Nation leader sweating on her five-star trip more than she’s willing to let on
Updated ,first published
London: Pauline Hanson seems more worried about her European holiday than she’s admitting. And she revealed she was incredibly sensitive to media questions about how she got to a luxury fashion show in Sicily.
The One Nation leader is making headlines with his trip to the Dolce & Gabbana show in Taormina and a stay at a five-star hotel with his friend and boss, mining billionaire Gina Rinehart.
He’s been clearly irritated by all the attention over the past few days, and went to extraordinary lengths to dodge questions after landing in London to speak at the right-wing Conservative Political Action Conference.
Hanson and his general counsel, James Ashby, knew reporters at CPAC would ask him questions he didn’t want to answer. So they ran to hide. They remained behind the VIP cordon, guarded by security personnel. During their rare moments in public, they rushed past reporters. Hanson did not accept a single question.
Most of the Australian media in London were at CPAC on Saturday morning to see Hanson speak and, if all went well, were about to ask a few questions. There were at least a dozen reporters from all major media outlets, including this one.
ABC reporters Elias Clure and Riley Stuart at least managed to reach Hanson as they sped past the Intercontinental Hotel at the O2 arena in Greenwich. They asked if he had been compensated for his time in Sicily. The answer? “I need to go in.”
Even when Hanson went into the audience to hear Reform UK leader Nigel Farage, he walked to the VIP area afterwards rather than going anywhere within reach of the journalist. He did the same while speaking at the conference on Saturday morning. The VIP area was his safe space.
All this hiding has become a bit ridiculous. For hours after his speech, he remained out of sight at the luxury hotel because he knew journalists wanted to ask him questions. Ashby appeared frequently to check that the coast was clear. Finally, he collected various bags from the doorman and headed for a taxi in front of the hotel; Hanson was not around.
The One Nation leader was clearly about to leave. The mystery was how this happened. The taxi took off with Ashby inside. A cameraman also followed part of the way on foot. Minutes later the taxi returned from where it started. He had completed a full tour of the hotel using the access road that runs along the edge of the vast O2 arena.
The taxi stopped. Ashby leaned forward on his cell phone to give the driver instructions. The taxi moved faster this time. He was not seen again. The taxi was probably heading towards the access road and Hanson had turned around and walked away, presumably through a corridor from the hotel to the O2 arena which led to the road and the taxi.
The wait lasted hours. Escape took time and effort. And that was because Hanson was very sensitive about taking questions.
Here are a few questions to ask him. He says taxpayers won’t pay for his travel expenses. So who will do it? Was his trip funded by him, Rinehart, or One Nation and its members? If she were Rinehart’s guest, will the value of this gift be disclosed? Did someone else finance the flights and hotel rooms? Voters will make up their own minds about One Nation’s relationships with its wealthy patrons.
Here are a few more. While Hanson says she “respects” Russian President Vladimir Putin, does she support her Senate colleague Malcolm Roberts? Does he support Roberts when he shares a famous anti-Semitic example?
And a few more. How can Australia reduce net migration to 130,000 per year (yes, a target many want) without slowing economic growth? What police work will be put aside so officers have time to enforce the burqa ban?
Some credit Hanson for the way he uses social media to bypass mainstream trends and reach voters. Speaking to this imprint at CPAC, Farage said on social media that he was “very, very smart.” CPAC was full of right-wing commentators talking about the decline of mainstream media.
So if the mainstream media doesn’t care, why does Hanson seem so paranoid about it? Could it be because her luxury vacation was featured everywhere last week – in print, online, on TV, on the radio? And did the story resonate across Instagram, TikTok, Facebook and more? Old and new media fed off each other.
This caused real brand damage to Hanson and One Nation, and it appears to be entirely his fault. He told voters he didn’t actually want to be involved with the organization, but wanted to join as a freshman.
Hanson, who is basking in his recent rise in the opinion polls, appears increasingly clueless about his personal destiny. He told the CPAC audience that One Nation could be in government after the next election.
However, his speech at the event did not draw a crowd. Although it garnered applause when it pushed the usual conservative buttons (trans rights, net zero, white privilege, etc.), it was short and lacked real power. It was largely a repetition of the words he had said at dinner the evening before, as if he couldn’t think of enough new things to say to fill two speaking slots.
And her avoidance of the press seemed like the routine of a reclusive pop diva, not a serious politician. It was funny but revealing.
Tough politicians ask questions. The weak run away.
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David Crowe is the European correspondent for The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age.Connect with: X or email.
