A Daily Mail opinion column by Peter van Onselen criticises a new Guardian Australia podcast for portraying a supposed "scoop" about One Nation leader Pauline Hanson's daughter, Lee, as scandalous, when the substance amounts to an unsigned administrative form. Lee Hanson, a senior adviser to NSW One Nation senator Sean Bell, works remotely from Tasmania, which requires sign-off from the Special Minister of State; that specific form was not completed, though her contract was otherwise processed and her role reclassified by the Finance Department. The columnist argues this is being inflated into a major controversy despite no wrongdoing, and that the wider reporting relies on insinuation rather than evidence.

The piece notes the Guardian highlighted Lee Hanson's $150,000–$180,000 salary, which the columnist says is simply the standard published pay band for the role, and that she is employed by another senator, not her mother, breaking no rules. Other claims cited include her attending One Nation events during "working hours" and sending a work email about staffing at 2.20pm on a Tuesday, both of which the columnist dismisses as unremarkable given her HR responsibilities and flexible staffer hours. The column also contrasts staffing levels, noting One Nation's six parliamentarians have four advisers compared with the Greens' 11 parliamentarians and 17 advisers, and questions why similar scrutiny has not been applied to Labor figures, including the minister involved, Don Farrell, and the Guardian's own former political editor Katharine Murphy, who moved into a senior role in the Prime Minister's office.