Australian party accused of asking US gun lobby for money

Australia's prime minister on Tuesday expressed concern over a media report that an influential minor political party had asked the U.S. gun lobby for donations to help undermine Australian gun laws.

An Al Jazeera documentary showed One Nation party officials Steve Dickson and James Ashby flew to the United States for meetings with the National Rifle Association and other pro-gun interests in September last year weeks before the Australian Parliament banned foreign political donations. It is unclear whether they secured any money.

Prime Minister Scott Morrison said his government had made laws to "criminalize taking foreign political donations so foreign lobbyists cannot seek to influence our politics." "Reports that senior One Nation officials courted foreign political donations from the US gun lobby to influence our elections & undermine our gun laws that keep us safe are deeply concerning," Morrison tweeted.

The Al Jazeera documentary, using secret recordings made by a journalist posing as gun lobbyist Rodger Muller with a hidden camera, comes ahead of elections expected in May.

One Nation, an anti-Muslim party that had four senators after 2016 election but has been left with two after defections, said in a statement that all party members "have always complied with the law."
One Nation also suggested the Qatar-owned Al Jazeera had breached new laws that prohibit covert foreign interference in Australian politics. The party said it had had complained to Australia's main domestic security agency and police "due to concerns of foreign interference into Australian politics in the lead up to the imminent federal election."