Foreign interference tackled: Morrison

Prime Minister Scott Morrison says his government has appropriately tackled foreign interference in politics, despite fresh concerns raised in a media report.

Peter Dutton at Parliament House.

Peter Dutton at Parliament House. Source: AAP

Scott Morrison says his government's record is "squeaky clean" when it comes to foreign interference in politics.

A Chinese billionaire seeking citizenship paid tens of thousands of dollars to a lobbyist to secure a private lunch with Peter Dutton when he was immigration minister, it has been revealed.

Chinese billionaire Huang Xiangmo has slammed Australia in a lengthy interview after he was stripped of his visa earlier this month.
Chinese billionaire Huang Xiangmo has slammed Australia in a lengthy interview after he was stripped of his visa earlier this month. Source: Global Times/Huang Xiangmo
Labor has described the incident as a "cash for access" scandal and demanded Mr Dutton immediately explain "all the murky details".

Huang Xiangmo paid the money to former Liberal minister Santo Santoro in 2016 while mounting a campaign to secure Australian citizenship.

He then met with Mr Dutton at a Chinese restaurant in Sydney, according to an investigation by the ABC's Four Corners.

The minister has denied his citizenship bid was discussed at the meeting.

Mr Huang's citizenship request was ultimately denied, after ASIO objected to his links to the Chinese Communist Party.

Mr Morrison said the government had taken strong action on foreign interference, including legislation and putting extra funding into security agencies.

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1 min read
Published 9 April 2019 10:10am
By Heba Kassoua
Presented by Good Morning Ausralia


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