Larissa Waters (Queensland, Australian Greens) Share this | Hansard source

Thank you, Minister. I appreciate you finally giving us a rundown of those amendments. I'm not sure why it took seven attempts to do so, but I do genuinely appreciate the guidance that you've given there. I have a follow-up question in relation to the affiliation fees, which was the third amendment that you mentioned. I don't know which number amendment it is, unfortunately. You mentioned that affiliation fees up to four times the amount of the gift cap for peak bodies can be contributed. I understand that, under the bill that was tabled, there would have been a $20,000 cap on the amount that peak bodies—such as the Business Council or the Minerals Council, for example—could take from their member organisations for their own national political campaigns. Is it correct that the amendment that you've just flagged essentially changes that? Is it the case that every single big mining company that is a member of the Minerals Council can now contribute $250,000 in affiliate fees to the Minerals Council—not $20,000 anymore but $250,000? Is it the case that the Minerals Council could then spend that on electoral purposes and only be capped from doing so above $11½ million? Please let me be wrong about that, but is that the case?