Shock horror – electorates used MPs for fundraisers

3 News reported last night:

3 News can reveal details about a fundraising network used by the National Party to get donations in exchange for access to and .

The Green Party is calling it a secret racket, but because the donations are declared there are no rules broken.

The first rule of Cabinet Club is you do not talk about Cabinet Club. Four National MPs 3 News spoke with said they were not sure what it was.

It's been many years since was involved in the party organisation, but to the best of my knowledge there is no central organisation called Cabinet Club. It is a generic term that some use (including me) to refer to electorate level fundraisers where you pay an annual fee for a series of breakfast or lunch meetings with MPs.

Each electorate that has one, designs it themselves. Some may do a monthly breakfast with an MP or Minister speaking. Some may do occassional lunches or dinners. I'm not sure how many, if any, are called Cabinet Clubs. It's a term that is used internally a bit as a generic term, but I'm not sure how many electorates, if any, use that term.

is not some new secret fundraiser. Such “clubs” (it's not a club – it an annual payment for a series of functions) have been absolutely common since at least the 1990s, if not the 1980s. And yes both major parties have electorates that use them.

Supporters pay a fee or donation to the party to attend three or four “informal luncheon/breakfast get-togethers”. They get access to ministers who attend, though the party claims “not in a ministerial capacity”.

It's not access to ministers. It's attending a function where they speak and do Q+A. Just like Ministers and MPs do around the country for rotary clubs, chambers of commerce and the like.

We have incredibly accessible Ministers. Most Ministers are doing public functions a couple of times a week. Almost anyone can meet an Minister in their electorate office, if they have one. If you ask to meet a Minister on a portfolio matter, most will make time to meet you. And community organisations and Ministers invite Ministers and MPs all the time to speak to them, meet them etc.

I note no other media seemed to have treated this as a , as it is basically a non-story. The main people excited by it are Green Party supporters as they don't want parties to be funded by private donations. They want to pass a law forcing taxpayers to directly fund political parties – which of course entrenches the established parties.

UPDATE: If you want a casr though of selling direct access, I blogged last year on how was selling one on one meetings with its MPs for $1,500. Maybe an inquiring journalist could ask Norman what he thinks of that. National sells tickets to breakfasts and lunches. Labour sells one on one meetings.

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