MOJO SERIES: WHAT THE F*CK IS POLITICS? 

By MATILDA BOSELEY,
politics editor

There’s a new political party on the block, and its establishment has caused quite the stir.

In February this year, South Australian senator Cory Bernardi made headlines after quitting the Coalition to create his own party, the Australian Conservatives.

Last Friday the controversial politician formally applied for his new party to be registered, so now is the perfect time to get up to date on everything Australian Conservatives.

How did the Australian Conservatives come about?

On February 6, Senator Bernardi splintered from the Coalition, saying goodbye to the Libs and hello to his very own Australian Conservatives.

Senator Bernardi has been a Liberal frontbencher and senator for South Australia since May 2006.

But the outspoken, highly conservative politician has been voicing his dissatisfaction with the Liberal Party for several years, saying they had become overly moderate.

“The respect for the values and principles that have served [the Liberal Party] well, seem to have been set aside for expedient, self-serving, short term ends,” Senator Bernardi said in his resignation speech.

http://gty.im/634083428

Looking positive: Cory Bernardi in his Parliamentary offices last month.

This prompted him to create his own ultra-conservative party, based on “enduring values and principles”.

“It really is time for a better way, a conservative way,” he said as he announced his exit from the Liberal Party.

But what does he mean?

What do the Australian Conservatives stand for?

The Australian Conservatives’ website states the party is supportive of small government, free trade and Christian values.

These are all pretty standard for Right-wing parties, and basically means they want less government regulation, lower taxes on businesses and fewer trade restrictions.

What we can also expect though, is for the party to reflect many of Senator Bernardi’s controversial views on hot-button issues, which he has become well known for.

Perhaps you remember the senator sporting a Trump-like “Make Australia great again” hat late last year.

Recall his strong opposition to Islam, immigration and halal certification, and his long-term support for the proposed burka ban.

He spoke out against the Safe Schools program – a program aimed at reducing bullying and bias against LGBTI students in Australian schools – saying it “bullies heterosexual children”.

He also resigned as then opposition leader Tony Abbott’s parliamentary secretary in 2012 after suggesting gay marriage could lead to bestiality.

“There are even some creepy people out there ... [who] say that it is ok to have consensual sexual relations between humans and animals … will that be a future step?” he said during a Senate debate in 2012.

So now you’re probably wondering, with all the party leader’s contentious views, do the Australian Conservatives stand a chance?

Will the Australian Conservatives succeed?

The party managed to amass more than 60,000 followers by December last year, according to the Australian Conservatives’ website.

But Dr Nick Economou, a senior lecturer of Australian Politics at Monash University, said he did not believe the party’s following would be enough to get Senator Bernardi re-elected as an independent senator in the federal election in 2019.

“I don’t think there is enough electoral support there to sustain Cory Bernardi, because there has never been any such support in the past,” Dr Economou said.

So far as an Australian Conservative, Senator Bernardi has attempted to remove the words "insult" and "offend" from the provisions of section 18C of the Racial Discrimination Act, which bars a person from publicly making racist statements against another person or group. It would still be against the law to "humiliate" or "intimidate" on the basis of race, colour or ­national or ethnic origin. 

This change failed in Parliament, with Senator Bernardi calling it a “huge fail” for freedom of speech.

He has also proposed a plan to hold politicians to account, which includes freezing their pay until the Budget is back on track. This is yet to be endorsed by any other politician.

Perhaps this is why Dr Economou is not convinced.

“I don’t think Australians are interested in ideological politics,” he said.

“Presumably, if he’s like every other failed conservative, he will go on to be a commentator on Sky News.”

I guess we’ll have to wait and see.

Senator Bernardi and the Australian Conservatives did not respond to Mojo’s request for comment.