Premier's Belt and Road adviser helped land Labor donation

Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews’ top Belt and Road adviser was instrumental in landing a $100,000 donation to the Labor party through a key Chinese business group years before Victoria signed up to the controversial infrastructure scheme.

Mr Andrews’ senior adviser, Marty Mei, who is on the board of the Hunan Business Association, helped secure the contribution in the lead up to the 2014 state election, according to sources with knowledge of the donation. He later became Mr Andrews' multicultural adviser and worked on the Belt and Road deal.

The Belt and Road deal has opened a rift between the federal and state government after Victorian Treasurer Tim Pallas accused the Morrison government of "vilifying" China in pushing for a global inquiry into the coronavirus.

Daniel Andrews accepts a cheque for the Victorian Labor Party in 2014. Credit:

The row escalated on Friday with senior DFAT officials furious over the leak of Victorian government notes quoting one of their senior officials in a private meeting two years ago, with the federal department revealing it "advised caution about entering into written agreements relating to BRI".

The Age and The Sydney Morning Herald this week revealed the Andrews government failed to consult the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade before signing a key Belt and Road agreement with Beijing in October last year.

The Belt and Road deal will allow for Chinese investment in Victoria and for Victorian companies to participate in Chinese government infrastructure projects overseas. Federal government figures are concerned it will undermine Australia’s own influence in the region and load poorer countries up with debt.

Mr Andrews has since labelled the deal "more important than ever" to Victoria’s post-coronavirus economic recovery and said it was one of many agreements that would help secure Victorian "jobs, profitability and prosperity".

Key members of the Hunan Business Association were photographed handing over the cheque to Mr Andrews, then Opposition leader, at the Clayton Multicultural Festival on September 12, 2014 - two months before Labor won a slim majority of just two seats at the state election. The Hunan Business Association has links to the Chinese Communist Party’s United Front department. The Chinese government has targeted independent community groups as a means of spreading its influence around the world.

The donation was made and disclosed by Chinese-Australian businessman Jianping Fu. There is no public record of a similar donation being made to the Liberal Party by Mr Fu. The Age and The Sydney Morning Herald do not suggest any wrongdoing and there is nothing improper about Mr Mei’s role in the donation, or that there is anything improper about the donation itself.

According to the association’s records Ryan Ouyang, a major property and infrastructure developer, with commercial and residential projects across Melbourne through the Ouson Group became president of the Hunan Business Association in 2017. He had been praised the year before by China’s Ministry of Commerce for his advice on navigating the Australian market.

Mr Mei travelled to Beijing with Mr Andrews for the first and second signing of the Belt and Road deal in 2017 and 2018. The Age and The Sydney Morning Herald reported this week the board of the Australian and Victorian government funded Belt and Road foundation was stacked with advisers with high-profile links to the Chinese Communist Party, including China’s Treasury - the National Development and Reform Commission.

Mr Mei said he played a key role in Victoria’s new "China strategy", which landed multiple cooperation projects between the state and the Chinese Ministry of Culture, the Ministry of Education, and the State-owned Assets Commission of the State Council, according to his profile on the Boao Asia forum. It is unclear whether he is overstating his role and he did not respond to multiple requests for comment.

A spokeswoman for the Victorian government said Mr Mei at all times behaves appropriately. "He’s a valued member of the team and he’s working hard to grow jobs right across Victoria," she said.

Mr Mei, who came to Australia as an international student in 2006, rose through the ranks of the Victorian Labor Party after leaving Chinese state broadcaster CCTV. He joined Mr Andrews’ office following the 2014 election after working for former Labor MP Hong Lim.

Marty Mei (bottom right) at a Belt and Road meeting with the Chinese government. Credit:

RMIT described him as a "rising star of the Australian Chinese political community" in 2016. The profile, copied from local Chinese media lauds the "mainland newcomer" for his smooth integration into local political circles.

The staffer, who Labor sources said harbours ambitions of becoming an MP, would go on to become an unofficial spokesman for the Victorian government on international students, immigration and free trade in the Chinese press.

"As a Labor government, our attitude has always been very clear," he told Chinese media in 2016. "We support free trade agreements, and the Premier has repeatedly stated that free trade agreements are of great benefit to Victoria."

Documents show while Mr Mei was the Premier’s multicultural adviser, he was also a special consultant to another United Front-linked group, the Shenzhen Association. The association aims to promote stronger business ties between Shenzen, China's Silicon Valley and Melbourne. Mr Mei attended a ceremony where China's vice minister of the United Front Work Department of the Municipal Party Committee was the keynote speaker.

Marty Mei and Victorian Premier Daniel AndrewsCredit:

Mr Mei's appointment came at the same time as Chinese Communist Party influence agent Huang Xiangmo was named as an honorary president, a title that can be bestowed without the knowledge of the recipient. Mr Huang has been stranded overseas since 2019 after he had his application for an Australian passport rejected over security concerns. Mr Huang denies any wrongdoing.

In 2018, Mr Mei offered state government co-operation to a golf association run by a former director of a Belt and Road-spruiking company, Prospect Time International Investment.

Mr Mei said in December he attended the event to help build ties between the state of Victoria and China in relation to tourism.

DFAT was on Friday fuming over a report in The Australian newspaper revealing Victorian government meeting notes quoting Australia’s ambassador to China, Graham Fletcher, in May 2018.

Mr Fletcher, then a senior DFAT official specialising in China, told the Victorian government its plan to sign on to the BRI had merit, according to the Andrews government’s minutes of the meeting.

In a statement, DFAT said the suggestion in the article that it gave the nod to Victoria to sign up to the BRI was "misleading".

"The article incorrectly implies DFAT provided approval for the Victorian Government to sign a memorandum of understanding on China’s Belt and Road Initiative," DFAT said.

"At no stage did DFAT provide such approval to Victoria.

"Advice provided by DFAT officials was consistent with the Commonwealth Government's position."

DFAT’s minutes of the exchange do not include the "merit" quote and reveal Victorian government officials were warned about the risks of signing up to the BRI in the same meeting, according to senior federal government sources.