Liberals deny knowledge of Brethren, slam ALP over dirty tactics

A war of words has erupted over claims Liberal volunteers, including members of the Plymouth Brethren Christian Church were “aggressive” towards voters. The Liberals insist Labor was causing more trouble.

Labor campaigners believe the Plymouth Brethren Christian Church has been campaigning en-masse for Liberal candidates. Picture: Supplied,

A war of words has erupted over dirty election tactics, with the Liberal Party hitting back at claims some of its behaved “aggressively” during the campaign.

It comes after senior Labor figures told The Daily Telegraph they had experienced “intimidating” actions from Liberal workers in the Sydney seats of Bennelong, Reid and Parramatta.

Multiple sources insisted the arrival of dozens of worshipers of the Plymouth Brethren Christian Church (PBCC) would sometimes create a “hostile” atmosphere at polling booths.

One prominent member of the ALP who had been assisting in Parramatta described the actions of the PBCC as “obnoxious and intimidating”... and believed it had ultimately “lost them votes.”

Labor claims it was receiving “endless complaints” from concerned voters about the voting environment.

A large number of Liberal volunteers for Reid candidate Grange Chung, which the ALP believed featured many members of the Plymouth Brethren Christian Church. Picture: Supplied

In Bennelong - an elderly Labor volunteer said: “I have been campaigning in this area since the early days of John Howard in the 70s. I have never seen tactics like this.”

“They have been lining up like a rugby team and insisting people take the blue how-to-vote cards, while heckling anyone who had a red card in their hand. It’s disgraceful” they said.

On Monday, Reid MP Sally Sitou told this masthead she believed Liberal volunteers had been “loudly yelling at people” as they walked in to vote, which she described as “aggressive” and “antagonistic.”

“What we saw at polling booths was some pretty intimidating behaviour... and that’s something that I hope we never see at polling booths again,” Ms Sitou said in Burwood.

“We can’t be sure, but my sense is that it really turned a lot of voters off. You can’t mask a lack of policies by just loudly yelling at people as they walk into a polling booth. That is not how you win votes. A huge amount of spending and posters do not cover up the fact that you have no policies to offer the community. I think that sort of aggression and antagonism has no place in our system,” Ms Sitou claimed.

Liberal volunteers in Reid alongside Labor MP Sally Sitou at pre-poll. Source: supplied

Approached for comment - a Liberal spokesman said: “the Party is not aware of any specific incidents... however there have been numerous reports of Labor volunteers behaving appallingly.”

The spokesman referenced a note left at their campaign office in Eden-Monaro threatening to “burn it to the ground”, a man in an ALP shirt shoulder-charging one of their worker, and a Liberal truck in Goulburn smeared with what appeared to be faeces. All three incidents have been investigated by police.

NSW Liberal Headquarters was also unable to explain exactly how large numbers of PBCC members had suddenly become involved in their election efforts.

“We have no agreement whatsoever with any religious organisation, and don’t ask volunteers or members what their religious beliefs are nor do we intend to” the spokesman said.

One Liberal involved in the local campaign said the PBCC had in fact been “extremely generous with their time.”

“They just turned up one day and worked hard for the cause,” the insider said.

A note left on the doorstep of the Liberal HQ office in Eden-Monaro. Source: Supplied

“We didn’t have a clue until we read the media reports. But seriously - who in their right mind would be turning away volunteers, irrespective of their religious beliefs? It’s pretty outrageous for Labor to be throwing mud when they happily take money and assistance from the most rogue unions in the country,” the source said.

Another Liberal added: “it is disappointing that this country has double standards and Labor always plays victim. We revert to name-calling. We cannot accept everyone for who they are.”

When asked about the allegations of aggressive behaviour, a spokesperson for the PBCC said: “the church hopes its parishioners are respectful to everyone in the community at all times, and equally hopes that the same respect is offered to them at all times.

“If anyone has concerns about behaviour on polling booths, then they should refer those concerns to the relevant political parties other otherwise the appropriate authorities” the PBCC said.

According to the PBCC’s website, its worshippers “generally don’t vote” for religious reasons.

An online call leaked last week between PBCC members heard one saying: “make sure you shake hands with everyone that’s wearing a blue shirt... not just people you know.”

“Winning is fun. Who hasn’t enjoyed the blast over the last couple of weeks? We’re going to get stronger, smarter, faster, and we can smell the victory that’s in the air,” the man instructed.

The PBCC was described recently by Prime Minister Anthony Albanese as a “cult”

“It frankly doesn’t stack up that hundreds of people have just happened to turn up at polling booths, some travelling across state boundaries... what’s the quid pro quo given that (this) organisation doesn’t vote in elections,” Mr Albanese said.

In further comments the PBCC added: “we are a church. We don’t support political parties. And we don’t tell our members to volunteer... for political candidates.”

Federal MP for Parramatta, Andrew Charlton said hundreds of Liberal billboards couldn’t “fool voters.”

“Over the course of the last week in particular, we saw parishioners being frequently photographed by media, called “Exclusive Brethren” by others on polling booths, and taunted not only by keyboard warriors but even some candidates and sitting MPs” the PBCC said.

The seats of Reid, Parramatta and Bennelong were priority targets for the Opposition at this election - with the Party spending a fortune on advertising, flooding local areas with signs, trucks and expensive billboards. All three electorates suffered monumental swings in favour of the ALP - who are on track to win more than 60 percent of the overall vote and almost every booth.

Parramatta MP Andrew Charlton told this masthead: “you can’t fool voters. Hundreds of billboards without real policies only turned them away. The Liberals were telling Australians that the country was in crisis but then not offering any big solutions… it just didn’t stack up for most people. We had practical policies that were easy to explain,” Mr Charlton said.

On Saturday Jerome Laxale, the MP for Bennelong speculated the Coalition had spent “millions of dollars... trying to buy the seat.”

“I don’t think that kind of campaigning works. It’s backfired spectacularly. Posters don’t win elections, policies do” Mr Laxale said.

Originally published as Liberals deny knowledge of Brethren, slam ALP over dirty tactics