Victorian Liberal Party forced to return $300K of fundraising bids

Security concerns over successful bidders have forced the Victorian Liberal Party to give back more than $300,000 raised from fundraising auctions.

Gladys Liu during Question Time in Parliament House in Canberra. Picture Gary Ramage

The Victorian Liberal Party has been forced to return more than $300,000 from fundraising auctions with prizes of dinners with Malcolm Turnbull, Julie Bishop and Matthew Guy because of security concerns over the successful bidders.

The dinners with the then prime minister, foreign affairs minister and Victorian opposition leader were bought by guests at two tables brought to a 2015 fundraiser by current Chisholm MP, Gladys Liu.

The Herald Sun can also reveal that last year senior Liberals in Victoria had high-level talks about the wisdom of preselecting Ms Liu for Chisholm because of concerns about her associations in the Chinese community.

The October 2015 fundraiser was said to have raised $750,000 for the cash-strapped Victorian Division.

Held at Zinc in Federation Square, it was reported 400 people packed 40 tables at the $1100-a-head event.

Dinners with Malcolm Turnbull and Julie Bishop were bought by guests at two tables brought to a 2015 fundraiser by current Chisholm MP, Gladys Liu.

The winning bids for the dinners with Mr Turnbull and Ms Bishop, which both went for more than $100,000, came from two tables brought to the function by Ms Liu. The dinner with Mr Guy, which went for just under $100,000, was also bought by Ms Liu’s guests.

But the dinners never happened after the Prime Minister’s office was appraised of security concerns over the winning bidders and the Liberal Party was forced to refund more than $300,000.

Several senior Liberals have confirmed the red-faced refund. “Money was returned, there was great unhappiness,” a former senior official said.

Another source said Mr Guy was effectively forced to follow the federal MPs in pulling out of the dinner.

The source said the state leader was left with no choice after it was explained the prime minister and the foreign minister “would not be having dinner with these people”.

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The 2018 discussions about Ms Liu’s suitability for preselection came several months after Mr Turnbull declined an invitation to a Chinese New Year function because of concerns over the proposed VIP guest list. The Herald Sun has been told Mr Turnbull’s office redirected him to a Chinese New Year event in the CBD after receiving “advice” he should not associate with some of the guests.

In a statement Ms Liu said: “Any questions about Former Prime Minister Turnbull’s dinner or diary arrangements are probably best dealt with by him.”

A Liberal Party spokesman said: “Liberal Party of Australia (Victorian Division) fundraising complies with all relevant state and federal laws.”

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Originally published as Victorian Liberal Party forced to return $300K of fundraising bids