Pauline Hanson’s One Nation party has reported more than $1m in missing and worthless assets in financial records spanning 2016 to 2022, according to documents obtained by Guardian Australia. The filings, lodged with the Office of Fair Trading in Queensland, have been criticized by financial accounting expert Matthew Pinnuck as “sloppy and unprofessional.”
Pinnuck, a professor at the University of Melbourne and former audit manager at KPMG, assessed the returns and highlighted “highly unusual” entries. In 2021, the party’s balance sheet showed property and equipment worth $93,000, yet it reported purchasing $575,710 worth and selling $492,491 worth—amounts far exceeding the total carrying value. He noted that such transactions are “very unusual” and difficult to explain.
Another anomaly involved the purchase of over $100,000 in office equipment in 2020, which was immediately written off as worthless through depreciation to zero in the same year. Typically, office equipment has a useful life of five to ten years. The party also posted significant financial losses in three of the last four years, including a $1.05m deficit in 2022, raising questions about its financial management.
One Nation has filed as a “special purpose entity,” a method for small businesses requiring less disclosure, which Pinnuck argues may breach the Corporations Act. He stated that given the party’s political significance and reliance by external stakeholders, it should prepare full-scope financial statements. Additionally, the party failed to hold annual general meetings on time, filed reports late, and used a non-director to sign a director’s declaration, potentially violating legal obligations.
