One Nation leader Pauline Hanson has refused to say who paid for her trip to Italy, after returning to London to speak at a pricey political dinner.
Senator Hanson has been in the United Kingdom and Europe for almost two weeks.
She has described the trip as “a fact-finding mission” and met with multiple right-wing figures.
But the 72-year-old has also been spotted in the Sicilian tourist town of Taormina, where she attended a Dolce & Gabbana fashion show and appeared on the pool deck at a swanky hotel alongside her billionaire friend and political benefactor Gina Rinehart.
On Friday afternoon, local time, the pair emerged at the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC), held at the InterContinental Hotel in London’s south-east.
When asked by the ABC if she had paid for her time in Sicily, Senator Hanson raised her hand and said: “I need to go inside.”
Pauline Hanson (right) speaks to a woman at the Dolce & Gabbana fashion show. (Instagram: @beatyesterday_art)
The Mediterranean sojourn has drawn jibes from Senator Hanson’s opponents in Canberra, including Opposition Leader Angus Taylor, who has accused her of “being over in Italy, living it up”, while others have questioned who has footed the bill.
A spokesperson for the One Nation leader has said all tax-payer-funded travel will be disclosed publicly, in accordance with parliamentary rules.
Senator Hanson was scheduled to deliver a speech as part of a black-tie dinner at CPAC on Friday night, local time. Media were not permitted to attend.
The cheapest tickets to that event were 600 pounds ($1,156), and included access to the conference. The most expensive were 10,000 pounds ($19,268).
Ms Rinehart and Senator Hanson were in the CPAC auditorium earlier in the day to hear British right-wing political leader Nigel Farage deliver a speech in which he warned the UK “was less than a decade away from becoming a third-world country”.
Mr Farage, like Senator Hanson, has seen his party Reform UK soar in opinion polls over the past 12 months.
“Pauline, it’s amazing what you’ve done to get to the top of the opinion polls. Phenomenal,” he told the crowd, while smiling at the One Nation leader, who was sitting in the front row.
Ms Hanson is also due to speak at the conference on Saturday morning, local time.
Australia’s richest person, Gina Rinehart, donned a pink cowboy hat at the conference. (ABC News: Daniel Pannet)
CPAC originated in the United States and typically comprises several days of speeches from a global who’s who of the right wing .
While multiple foreign countries, including Australia, have hosted their own CPAC events in the past, this is the first time Britain has staged one.
This iteration was convened by former UK prime minister Liz Truss, whose time in office lasted 49 days.
The program included sessions titled Drill Baby Drill, Mine Baby Mine and The Blob: Draining the Swamp of the Permanent Bureaucracy.
Prior to appearing at CPAC, Senator Hanson taped a podcast with right-wing activist Tommy Robinson, something regarded by her political foes, and even some within her own party, as a misstep.
Robinson is a convicted criminal who has served five separate jail terms in the UK, including one for kicking an off-duty police officer in the head.
During the podcast, Senator Hanson lamented the end of the White Australia policy and claimed, without citing evidence, that it was “quite known” Muslims were “ripping off” the NDIS.
Robinson, 43, made headlines in Australia last month after he appeared on a separate podcast hosted by veteran television presenter Karl Stefanovic, who was fired by his long-time employer, Channel Nine, after it was published.
Robinson, whose real name is Stephen Yaxley-Lennon, often describes himself as a British patriot, despite living in Spain.
The One Nation leader also spent time with performer-turned-political-activist Holly Valance while in Britain.
But Senator Hanson’s trip to Sicily has made plenty of headlines, too.
Earlier this week she was snapped hanging out with Ms Rinehart, who is Australia’s richest person, at Taormina’s world-renowned Grand Hotel San Pietro, where a one-night stay can cost upwards of $5,000.
And the glittering Dolce & Gabbana event she attended in the tourist town was also attended by multiple celebrities.
Among the invited guests were Jennifer Lopez, Monica Bellucci, The White Lotus actor Theo James and Norwegian footballer Erling Haaland.
Senator Hanson campaigns on cost-of-living issues, styles herself as a champion of Aussie battlers, and has criticised Prime Minister Anthony Albanese for spending too much time abroad.
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