Australia’s biggest political donor handed millions to Liberal Party

Australia’s biggest political donor has been revealed, with the rich lister handing over a staggering amount to one political party.

Australia‘s biggest political donor for the past year has been revealed as paper and cardboard magnate Anthony Pratt.

The billionaire executive chairman of Visy, pumped $1.29 million into Liberal Party branches through his company Pratt Holdings, over the course of 12 months.

The figure is down from $1.5 million Mr Pratt donated the year before, and less than half of the $3 million he handed over in 2018-19.

Anthony Pratt (left) is estimated to be Australia’s fourth richest person, with wealth over $20 billion. Picture: Twitter

A briefing published by Oxfam last month placed Mr Pratt as the fourth richest person in Australia with a fortune over $20 billion.

Last year, one of Mr Pratt’s paper mills was awarded $10 million from the Federal Government through the Bushfire Local Economic Recovery Fund, established to “help communities get back on their feet”.

Other big earners for the coalition included fundraising vehicle, The National Policy Forum, which brought in just over a quarter of a million dollars offering the private sector a “genuine voice at the policymaking table”.

The Labor Party’s biggest contributions came in the form of $3.67 million from associated entities - organisations either owned by or operating significantly for the benefit of the party.

The party also received under a combined $1 million from unions - the Shop, Distributive and Allied Employees’ Association (SDA), United Workers Union, and the Construction, Forestry, Maritime, Mining and Energy Union (CFMEU).

Donations open “powerful doors” for benefactors, according to an analysis by the Grattan Institute. SMH/AFR Pool Photo: Dominic Lorrimer

All up, Australia’s political parties reported a collective $177 million in income, which for the most part was unidentifiable.

It wasn’t just the major parties reaping serious dough from private benefactors. Right-wing movement, Advance Australia declared $1.3 million in donations, mostly from companies, while left-wing movement GetUp! raised $553,000, entirely from individuals.

A common practice is for some companies to donate to both major parties, and this year that included ANZ bank and Wesfarmers handing over more than $100,000 to both sides.

An analysis by the Grattan Institute of this year’s data noted that “donations open powerful doors.”

“Australia’s political parties typically rely on just a handful of major donors, and these donors can achieve significant access and influence,” it stated.

It also pointed out that four of the past five federal elections have been won by the party with the biggest war chest.

The political donation data was released by the Australian Electoral Commission on Tuesday.