One Nation candidate David Farley says funds rolling in from Toorak, Woollahra
The One Nation candidate for the Farrer by-election said old money from Sydney and Melbourne’s inner suburbs poured into his bid to disrupt the Coalition in May, while new Nationals chief Matt Canavan launched his campaign in the seat by stepping up attacks on Pauline Hanson’s party.
Agribusinessman David Farley, who will run for One Nation, claimed Hanson was one of the pioneers of high-quality candidates joining his party, but also admitted he disagreed with her recent comments about Muslims.
“Look at me, Cory Bernardi, Barnaby Joyce. The quality of candidates is shifting towards One Nation. And then look at the change in political opinion among voters. Generations that are used to these old parties are moving forward,” Farley told this imprint.
“It’s not just mums and dads on the streets, Toorak too [in Melbourne] and Woollahra [in Sydney]. The good thing about Toorak and Woollahra is that they bring their bags with them.”
Asked if Hanson agreed with Canavan’s rebuke that there are no good Muslims, Farley said: “It has recently been revealed that there are good Muslims in Bondi.”
The upcoming four-way race, which also features the Liberals and Climate 200-backed independent Michelle Milthorpe in Farrer, will test whether One Nation’s rise and the Coalition’s decline in the polls will be confirmed if voters elect former Liberal leader Sussan Ley’s successor on May 9.
Farley also expressed regret over previous comments she made about former prime minister Julia Gillard for positioning herself as a credible alternative to the Nationals and Liberals who have retained Farrer throughout their 77-year history.
Asked about his comments as chief executive of the Australian Agricultural Corporation in 2012, which likened Gillard to an “unproductive old cow” that needed to be destroyed, Farley said: “It was a joke. You know, like everything you say wrong in life. You wish you could take back your words, but I can’t.”
Farley said that with the war in the Middle East making oil prices a new flashpoint in farming communities, One Nation would campaign to halve fuel excise duty, which has become a hot issue with voters as panic buying tightens supply.
But Canavan warned that Hanson had failed to achieve policy change in his 30-year political career.
“Tell me, Pauline, what have you provided to the people of regional Australia in your 30-year career in politics?” The new National leader said this during his first visit to the electorate’s largest city, Albury, with candidate Brad Robertson on Friday.
The Liberals typically dominate Albury, where about half the electorate lives, while the electorate’s rural and farmland districts are seen as National strongholds. But with Coalition polls at historic lows, the contest is likely to be reflected in preference flows.
The Liberals finished last in the race and their primary will be held on Sunday evening. The two candidates are former Sussan Ley staffer Lachlan McIntyre and Albury councilor Raissa Butkowski. Party sources said the party will mobilize its campaign from Monday.
Robertson began knocking on the door for the Nationals, campaigning on local hospital and fuel access, and Canavan urged voters to keep an open mind. “I think the Liberal and National parties are back. They’re back to Angus Taylor and now I’m in as leader,” he said.
Canavan said Coalition parties were committed to ditching net-zero emissions targets, lowering the cost of living and imposing higher standards on Australia’s immigration intake; but the opposition has not yet announced how it plans to change immigration settings.
“We have the ability to deliver these through the Australian parliament. I know Barnaby.” [Joyce] really good. And the Barnaby I knew knew it took a team to get results,” Canavan said.
“One Nation’s traditional approach has been to not cooperate with other people, and if you don’t cooperate and build a team, nothing will change in this country.
“I think they need to take people’s votes into strong consideration… As a National Party we have a strong track record of working pragmatically and practically as a team with people in the city. That’s what you have to do to get the numbers in Parliament. Overall, it’s brutal maths.”
But both the Liberals and Nationals will face the well-resourced campaigns of the surging One Nation and Milthorpe, who pushed Ley into preference in the May election after coming ahead of the Liberals in every booth in Albury.
Milthorpe’s campaign is the most advanced and was launched in the afternoon with support from Climate 200 and Regional Voices fundraisers after Ley announced his retirement from politics last month.
Its volunteers were hitting weekend campaign events, holding street rallies and knocking on doors around voters. While Milthorpe has already made progress in Albury, he needs to gain ground elsewhere in the seat to win: he has strengthened his message on independent water policy and new events are planned for Griffith, Culcairn and Hay.
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Paul Sakkal is the chief political correspondent. It has previously covered Victorian politics and won the Walkley and Quill awards. Reach him securely on Signal @paulsakkal.14Connect with: X or email.
Natassia Chrysanthos is a Federal Political Correspondent. He has previously reported on immigration, health, social issues and the NDIS from Parliament House in Canberra.Connect with: X or email.
