Fraser Anning’s taxpayer-funded travel habits emerge after controversial Melbourne trip
Fraser Anning has defended his decision to bill taxpayers to attend a right-wing extremists rally as revelations emerge it was not the first time the Queensland senator has attended far-right events at the taxpayer’s expense. CHECK OUT THE INTERACTIVE TRAVEL MAP.
Queensland senator Fraser Anning has doubled down on his decision to bill taxpayers to attend a right-wing extremists rally despite being slammed by the prime minister for again associating with racism.
Both sides of politics have criticised the independent senator’s presence at the Saturday event, which was attended by people making Nazi gestures. Scott Morrison condemned Senator Anning for attending the rally in St Kilda and associating with extreme and offensive views.
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The accidental Senator who was elected with just 19 votes claimed $19,000 — more than any other Federal politician — to fly his family around the country between July and September courtesy of taxpayers.
Senator Anning, who split from One Nation and was kicked out of Katter’s Australian party, has said he represents regional and rural Queenslanders but half of his flight costs were for trips to Sydney, Melbourne or Perth.
Mr Morrison said accused Senator Anning of being a “repeat offender on these issues”.
But Senator Anning dismissed Mr Morrison, along with a chorus of critics from across the political divide.
“They’re all left-wingers and unfortunately the PM hasn’t understood the Australian people want an alternative,” he told Nine’s A Current Affair.
“As far as I’m concerned they’re all puppets to the United Nations.”
Senator Anning said the “neo-Nazi stuff” was at a separate rally about 150 metres from where he was on St Kilda beach despite being seen with convicted criminal Blair Cottrell who has previously expressed admiration for Adolf Hitler.
He said Nazi salutes were abhorrent to him, defending the $2852.80 he spent on flights to get to the rally, which he claimed was about “Sudanese gangs” being out of hand.
“I went to a rally of decent Australians who are sick and tired of what’s happening in the city,” he said.
The Senator’s comments come as reports emerged he also charged taxpayers to attend at least two other far-right events in 2018.
In July, he joined Canadian far-right activist Lauren Southern at a rally in Sydney.
Costs for the trip included two nights of accommodation for $810, and flights between Sydney and Brisbane costing nearly $1900, Independent Parliamentary Expenses Authority figures show.
The senator also charged taxpayers for another trip to Melbourne in October to speak at an Australian Liberty Alliance’s Rally for Free Speech but the costs have not yet been declared.
Senator Anning also spent $800 on publications, including two copies of the Communist Manifesto, several books on the US Constitution and the Koran.
Senator Anning sparked fury among parliamentarians and the public with his maiden speech in August when he called for a ban on Muslim immigration and a plebiscite, saying “the final solution to the immigration problem of course is a popular vote”.
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