Rort is a term used in Australia and New Zealand.
It is commonly related to politics, or, more generally, a financial impropriety, particularly relating to a government programme. The term was first recorded in 1919 and is a derivative of the older "rorty" a 19th century London slang word—meaning “fine; splendid; jolly; or boisterous”.
The term is also used as a verb to mean the action of defrauding, (e.g.: he rorted the system.).

A slang word in common usage, popular in the New South Wales

New South Wales

New South Wales is a state of :Australia, located in the east of the country. It is bordered by Queensland, Victoria and South Australia to the north, south and west respectively. To the east, the state is bordered by the Tasman Sea, which forms part of the Pacific Ocean. New South Wales...

 branch of the Australian Labor Party

Australian Labor Party

The Australian Labor Party is an Australian political party. It has been the governing party of the Commonwealth of Australia since the 2007 federal election. Julia Gillard is the party's federal parliamentary leader and Prime Minister of Australia...

, where it typically referred to such practices as branch stacking

Branch stacking

Branch stacking is the act of recruiting members for a branch of a political party for the principal purpose of influencing the outcome of internal preselections of candidates for public office...

, the term came into widespread use after the travel rorts scandal of 1997, in which a large number of Federal politicians were accused of misusing travel allowances. Three ministers David Jull

David Jull

David Francis Jull was an Australian politician. He was a long-serving Liberal member of the Australian House of Representatives, representing the Division of Bowman, Queensland, from 1975–83 and Fadden, Queensland, from 1984–2007.Jull was born in Kingaroy, Queensland, and was educated at the...

, Peter McGauran and John Sharp

John Sharp

John Sharp may refer to:*John Sharp *John Sharp , British television actor*John Sharp , Australian politician, member of the Australian House of Representatives...

 resigned as a result, and Labor frontbencher Nick Sherry

Nick Sherry

Nicholas John Sherry , Australian politician, has been a member of the Australian Senate for the state of Tasmania since July 1990, representing the Australian Labor Party. Sherry was sworn in as the Assistant Treasurer on 9 June 2009, after serving as the first Australian Minister for...

attempted suicide.