Dutton flatly denies huge portfolio claim

Opposition Leader Peter Dutton’s investments are in the spotlight and he has come out swinging in his defence.

Peter Dutton has come out swinging over questions regarding his share-trading and property investments flatly denying the Prime Minister’s claim he has assets in a private trust.

Insisting he had “only ever acted with integrity”, Mr Dutton said there were no issues and no hidden assets to declare.

It follows questions over his decision to buy bank shares during the global financial crisis and the Prime Minister’s claims he put money in a private trust.

“I’ve invested and a lot of astute investors would have bought bank shares at that time because they saw value in the shares and the balance sheets of Australian banks … I saw value in those shares,” he said.

Mr Dutton continued that “we have our house which has been declared, our private residence, [and] we have money in the bank and that’s it”.

It’s the first time he’s spoken out about the issue in detail after previously issuing a two sentence response five days after he was first contacted by news.com.au about the transactions last Thursday.

At his office’s request he was then granted five days to examine his records.

Asked if he was a member of the shadow expenditure review committee at the time he bought shares in CommBank, Westpac and Australia Bank Mr Dutton said he would have to “go back” because it was 15 years ago.

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Opposition Leader Peter Dutton’s family has made $30 million of property transactions across 26 pieces of real estate over 35 years. Picture: NewsWire/John Gass

News.com.au believes he was not a member at the relevant time. He had recently been appointed to the shadow health portfolio after previously holding the shadow finance portfolio until late 2008.

“Just to be very clear, there’s no information I’ve been privy to that influenced about any share that I’ve bought,” he said.

“I’ve conducted myself with integrity. Why would I be declaring every detail if there was something to be hidden? It’s nonsense … I’ve declared all the detail that’s required to be declared.

“I’ve not received any information that has influenced any share transaction by the selling or buying that I’ve made, or the purchase of any property or other asset or other asset class or type where I’ve been privy to any information other than what is publicly available. It’s not something that I would ever do, and that’s something I’m proud of.

“The Prime Minister’s office is shopping around dirt sheets at the moment – transactions that go back to when I was 20 years of age, I’ve conducted myself with integrity at every moment of my life, including as a police officer and since I’ve been in politics,” Mr Dutton said.

“If the Prime Minister has some claim to make, don’t get his lackeys to push it out there, get up and make the claim yourself, but of course the Prime Minister won’t, he’s happy to use third parties to try and shop around this sort of detail.

“I think it reflects poorly on the Prime Minister and the desperation that he’s in at the moment.”

He conceded that in a couple of instances he was late to update the register of interests regarding property transactions.

“There are some where the paperwork hasn’t been got in on time but there’s nothing consequential in that,” he said.

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Prime Minister Anthony Albanese was asked by broadcaster Neil Mitchell this week if he was using negative gearing on his $4m holiday home. Picture: NewsWire/Nikki Short

“They’ve trawled through every transaction of my life, my entire adult life and they’ve come up with the fact that we’ve bought and sold properties.

“My father and I started with nothing in a small building company and half the transactions are on that list of blocks of land that we’ve bought and my dad built a house and we sold the house and land.

“I never lived in the house, it was never rented out and it was a small business and if the Prime Minister is against aspiration and hard work and achievement, he should say so.

“I’m proud of what we achieved. I didn’t grow up with a silver spoon in my mouth.”

The Liberal leader said he had avoided criticising Mr Albanese for Copacabana.

Mr Dutton did not reference the cartoon stick drawing he recently drew of Mr Albanese standing next to a cliff top mocking his “retirement home” at Copacabana NSW.

“Prime Minister is a person of integrity as I am and he’s done well,” Mr Dutton said.

“He tells a story of growing up in housing commission. He’s now a multi-millionaire with property.

“Good luck to him and I just think we live in a country where there’s aspiration and I want a better outcome for families who at the moment have given up the dream of home ownership.”

Dutton’s giant property portfolio revealed

Mr Albanese took also a swing at Mr Dutton when he was put on the spot about negative gearing for investment properties last Friday.

Asked if he used the tax break on his Copacabana holiday house by news.com.au, he instead took aim at the Liberal leader, suggesting he owned more property than the PM.

“Seriously. I will swap my property portfolio with Peter’s,” he said.

This week, he doubled down to broadcaster Neil Mitchell observing that while he gets flack for buying his $4 million holiday house — his opponent is doing it on the quiet.

“Peter Dutton’s portfolio is a lot bigger than mine,” he said.

“The difference is I don’t have it behind a trust. But good on him. He’s entitled to do whatever he wants.”

Just like clockwork, a handy list of every property the former Queensland cop has ever bought and sold has now surfaced in The Sydney Morning Herald.

And it goes back 30 years.

It reveals according to the SMH the Dutton family has made $30m of property transactions across 26 pieces of real estate over 35 years, making him one of the country’s wealthiest-ever contenders for prime minister.

That includes Dutton holdings and investments he’s made with his builder dad and his wife and flipping houses in Queensland.

And it’s fair to say there are some good buys and some bad ones.

Dutton secured a massive payday after offloading this Gold Coast investment home for $6m in 2022 after buying it in 2014 for $2.325m. Picture: Supplied

For example, what’s up with the Brisbane property the SMH says he bought with his dad Bruce for $850,000 in 1992, a monster amount back then, which sold for $500,000 in 2002?

Unless the newspaper got the numbers around the wrong way, that is a $350,000 loss in ten years? Peter Dutton what are you doing?

There are some goodies though. In March, 2000, Dutton Holdings bought a childcare centre and land for $235,000 in Bald Hills Queensland.

Then Dutton Holdings sold it in May, 2013, for $1.3m.

He bought a luxury house for $2m on Palm Beach and eventually sold it for $6m.

Peter Dutton and his wife Kirilly. Picture: NCA NewsWire/Martin Ollman

According to his current disclosures to parliament, Mr Dutton currently owns only a single property, a farm in Dayboro just north of Brisbane that he bought for $2.165m in 2020.

But as news.com.au recently reported, Mr Dutton has offloaded around $12m in real estate holdings since 2019 and appears to have stashed the cash in a family trust.

According to his current disclosures to parliament, Mr Dutton currently owns only a single property, a farm in Dayboro just north of Brisbane that he bought for $2.165m in 2020.

But in recent years Mr Dutton sold an investment property on the Gold Coast for $6m in 2022 after buying it in 2014 for $2.325m.

He possibly should have hung onto it though as it’s now valued at $9m according to online estimators – twice the value of the Prime Minister’s $4m retirement home in Copacabana.

News.com.au revealed this month that the Prime Minister had quietly rented the clifftop Central Coast property out while refusing to detail how much rent he is receiving.

It has now emerged that he could be getting even more than first estimated, with the property advertised for $1500 a week rent or $78,000 a year.

Mr Albanese also rents out his family home in Marrickville for a reported $1350 a week or $70,000 a year.

Dutton’s stunning beachfront property (above) is now valued at $9m according to online estimators.

Peter Dutton’s big payday

Four years ago, Mr Dutton himself capitalised on the booming Gold Coast real estate market, listing his luxury beachfront property for auction before securing a record $6m payday.

The two-storey Palm Beach pad occupied a prime 546 sqm plot at 109 Jefferson Lane, one of the city’s most exclusive beachfront strips.

Marketing agent Troy Dowker said the size of the block and an adjoining nature reserve were key selling points.

“The block is larger than the standard 412 sqm and borders parkland which means you’ve not got a neighbour to the north,” he said.

“That open outlook really maximises the vantage points looking north to Burleigh Heads, the city skyline and South Stradbroke beyond.”

The Duttons also sold a luxury Brisbane penthouse for $3.47m in 2022.

The Duttons also sold a luxury Brisbane penthouse (view from balcony, above) for $3.47m in 2022. They had bought the penthouse a year earlier for $2.7 million.

The property win came after they purchased it a year earlier for $2.7 million. While property records did not list the Riparian Plaza pad in the Federal Member for Dickson’s name, the Courier Mail revealed that he sold the plush penthouse in October for $3.47 million – turning a $700,000 profit in just 12 months.

However, the Duttons may have had other property holdings tied up in their investments Dutton Holdings (Qld) P/L, PK Super (Qld) P/L and RHT Investments (Qld) P/L which is controlled by his wife. Dutton Holdings (Qld) P/L and Bald Hills Child Care P/L were voluntarily deregistered in 2022.

They had bought the penthouse a year earlier for $2.7m.

Townsville shopping centre

In 2022, Mr Dutton’s wife also sold a Townsville investment property – which had been held by a family trust that she is the beneficiary of for $840,000 after purchasing it in 2016 for $760,000. This proved a great price because it was sold again in 2024 at a substantial loss for just $700,000.

The property sparked controversy in 2020 after it emerged Mr Dutton had forgotten to list it on his parliamentary property records in a blunder his office blamed on simple human error. The breach of the rules is regarded as a potential “serious contempt” of parliament.

It subsequently emerged that a company owned by Mr Dutton’s wife had paid its overdue rates in a last-ditch effort to avoid the forced auction of a Townsville property.

The Townsville Bulletin revealed that Edison Plaza in Wulguru was on a list of properties set to be auctioned due to unpaid rates and charges.

Townsville City Council published the list, with 35 Edison St, owned by Kirilly Dutton’s investment company RHT Investments, among 42 properties included.

However, Mr Dutton’s office contacted the newspaper swiftly to confirm the remaining rates had been paid. Then Colliers said they sold it in March 2022.

However, parliament’s register of interests wasn’t updated until August 2022. It’s not clear if there was a long settlement that explains the discrepancy.

News.com.au has contacted Mr Dutton’s office for comment.

Mr Dutton’s wife sold a Townsville investment property in 2022 (above) – which had been held by a family trust that she is the beneficiary of – for $840,000 after purchasing it in 2016 for $760,000.

In 2020 Dutton and Kirilly sold their family home in Camp Mountain for $1.8m, which they had bought in 2004 for $710,000.

In 2019, Mr Dutton sold his Canberra apartment for $540,000. The family super fund PK super (QLD) also appears to have been deregistered in March 2024.

However, Mr Dutton’s office does not appear to have updated the register until just days ago in late January, 2025.

Landlord Albo

Mr Albanese was asked by broadcaster Neil Mitchell this week if he was using negative gearing on his $4m holiday home.

“You’re a landlord, of course, did you negatively gear your property?,” Mitchell asked.

“No,” Mr Albanese replied.

“No? Paid cash?,” Mitchell said.

“No,” Mr Albanese replied.

“So you’re just not claiming?,” Mitchell said.

“No. I don’t want to go through all of my finances on air,” Mr Albanese said.

“But negative gearing is the important one, because there’s been a lot of criticism in the Labor Party,” Mitchell said in response.

Mr Albanese then used the same set of words he did in Adelaide.

“I’ve not used negative gearing at any time that I’ve been Prime Minister,” Mr Albanese said.

Which suggests he has used it to minimise tax previously.

Shares controversy

The hoo-ha over Peter Dutton’s property holdings follows controversy over his trading in bank shares during the global financial crisis.

News.com.au revealed on Tuesday that a forensic analysis of Mr Dutton’s declarations to parliament reveals he notified parliament of a share-buying blitz involving the big banks the day before Labor announced a bailout in 2009.

The Prime Minister has said it is up to Peter Dutton to clarify whether or not he engaged in insider trading during the global financial crisis as his Liberal colleagues slammed Labor’s pursuit as a “grubby” hit job targeting the man who could be Australia’s next Prime Minister

During campaigning in Sydney, Mr Albanese was asked if the Labor Party was seriously suggesting that the Liberal leader engaged in insider trading.

“That’s a matter for Peter Dutton to explain,” the Prime Minister replied.

But Mr Dutton, who is yet to comment publicly on the claims, slammed the allegations via a spokesman as muckraking accusing Labor’s “dirt unit” of trawling his financial records to create controversy.

“If the Albanese Government’s dirt unit spent more time being focused on fixing Labor’s cost of living crisis rather than obsessing about Peter Dutton, Australians might be better off,” a spokesman said.

“Mr Dutton had no access to any sensitive information on these matters, nor was he privy to government briefing on the GFC.”

Originally published as Dutton flatly denies huge portfolio claim