A swanky fundraising event featuring Malcolm Turnbull as its star attraction has been cancelled in the wake of the leadership spill.
The ‘Federal Business Policy Exchange’ event was supposed to raise as much money as possible for the next federal election, but has since been cancelled.
The scrapped fundraiser is major blow for the Liberal Party, with some officials suggesting that any imminent election would leave the party strapped for cash, The Sydney Morning Herald reported.
A swanky fundraising event that was going to feature Malcolm Turnbull as the star attraction has been cancelled in the wake of the leadership spill
The event, which was to be held at the Sydney offices of PricewaterhouseCoopers, was supposed to be an opportunity for guests to meet and greet ministers.
Tickets for the entire full-day fundraiser, including meetings with the ministers, were listed at a whopping $12,500-per-head.
Guests were allowed to nominate five one on one meetings with ministers of their choice, followed by a sit down dinner with the PM and his cabinet at Catalina Rose Bay later that evening.
The luxurious waterfront restaurant in Sydney’s eastern suburbs, which saw a young Neil Perry launch his career, is renowned for its delicious seafood and stunning vista.
The cancelled meet and greet is just another big-money fundraising event that has been scrapped, prompting some federal MPs to question the fundraising efforts of certain MPs, the publication reported.
NSW Liberal president Philip Ruddock, who singled out the best fundraisers in late May, is understood to have threatened to ‘name and shame’ electorates that are falling short.
The cancelled fundraiser was supposed to include a luxe dinner with the former PM and his cabinet at Catalina Rose Bay (pictured)
Catalina Rose Bay (pictured) in Sydney’s eastern suburbs is renowned for its delicious seafood and stunning vista.
A spokesperson for PwC told the Financial Review that the event had been organised by The Liberal Party not PwC and had been postponed until further notice.
‘We have been advised by the Australian Business Network that it has postponed this event,’ the spokesperson said.
A Liberal Party spokesman reportedly told The Daily Telegraph that the event has indeed been cancelled.