Albanese evasive over Point Piper dinner attendance

The prime minister's attendance at an intimate dinner hosted by a billionaire family, which is facing allegations of tax office deception, has been questioned. Political opponents have criticised Anthony Albanese's transparency as well "cash for access" practices in politics. What's next? Annual political donations are made public in February each year. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has attempted to skirt questions about his attendance at a dinner hosted by a billionaire family accused of funnelling money from China, saying he attends "a lot of dinners". Earlier in the week, reports by Nine newspapers revealed Mr Albanese had attended the dinner at the mansion of 25-year-old Felix Lee in Point Piper, Sydney. Mr Lee's father, Phillip Dong Fang Lee, faces allegations of deceiving the Australian Tax Office (ATO) about his holdings in order to channel huge sums into Australian bank accounts. Speaking to the ABC's Insiders on Sunday morning, Mr Albanese evaded directly referring to the dinner, stating he attends "a lot". Pressed on his inability to answer, he said, "You just said that that occurred." "I attend lots of dinners in lots of places, and I don't talk about private dinners," he added. Other prominent figures were reportedly in attendance, including Commonwealth Bank CEO Matt Comyn and former Victorian premier Daniel Andrews. Mr Albanese said he was not aware of the money funnelling concerns surrounding Mr Lee senior. Mr Lee and his wife, Ziaobei Shi, are not new to scrutiny. The ATO pursued the pair for $273 million in unpaid taxes in 2021, freezing their assets before reportedly settling the following year. "He wasn't there … I attend a lot of meetings, functions, with lots of people. I mean talking about people's relatives, even removed from that," Mr Albanese said. "We declare all of our donations in accordance with the rules, we're transparent about it. I do attend a lot of events and that is part of the process that occurs engaging with people." It is unclear how much was pledged as a Labor donation for each attendee but The Sydney Morning Herald claims it was $10,000 a head, raising potential concerns of money buying influence in politics. Shadow Defence Minister James Paterson said who the prime minister dined with was of legitimate public interest, given his position. "His refusal to answer any questions about this dinner or the source of these funds raises very serious questions about him and his judgement, and it's time that he fronts up," he said on Saturday. Independent MP David Pocock said "cash for access to our government has to stop". "It's one of the ways vested interests have an outsized influence on policy, and we see this in real time on everything from taxing gas to minimising gambling harm and banning gambling ads." On Friday, several frontbenchers were pressed to respond to reports about the dinner and repeatedly referred any issues relating to donations as a "matter for the party".