Senator Nick Xenophon insists there's no impropriety involved in the $170,000 worth of donations his party has received from businessman Ian Melrose.
The ALP this week requested the Australian Electoral Commissioner examine donations from Mr Melrose to Senator Xenophon to determine whether they are loans, which is against the law.
The South Australian senator says Mr Melrose has made donations, not loans.
"It was always in the nature of a donation, not a loan," he told reporters in Melbourne on Wednesday.
In March, Mr Xenophon said he wanted to "pay" Mr Melrose back, but on Wednesday he said that does not mean the donation was a loan.
Mr Xenophon also denied he is a hypocrite for accepting political donations of more than $100,000.
The South Australian senator has in the past said if someone makes a political donation of $100,000, then they own you.
"I think it was a clever line at the time, but perhaps too clever by half," Mr Xenophon said.
He says he and the Nick Xenophon Team have always been transparent about political donations.
"We're disclosing them virtually in real time, unlike the others."
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