In 2017, it was found Jian Yang had not declared his prior involvement within the Chinese intelligence service prior to the 2017 general election. Instead of confronting the issue head-on and being open with the public, the National Party effectively swept it under the rug in the midst of the election campaign. The issue then faded into obscurity as issues took precedence.

Then, this year, Simon Bridges confirmed via the phone-call that he had taken the sum of $100,000 as a "donation" and suggested that these Chinese businessmen were interested in standing for parliament. To achieve this, Simon said (over the phone) that he wished to "get rid of" two senior National MP's (David Carter, Chris Finlayson). What this shows us is Simon Bridges is willing to accept large donations in exchange for effectively giving away seats in parliament.