Taxpayers have been paying more than $10,000 a month for George Christensen’s “e-material” in the same period that he racked up an $85,000 Facebook advertising bill for issues including vaccine discrimination, and a conspiracy theory about the “unelected global elite”.
According to reports from the independent parliamentary expenses authority, Christensen claimed more than $50,000 for “e-material” over nine months in 2021, with the spend ramping up to an average of $11,000 a month from the middle of the year.
Over the past 18 months, Christensen has spent $85,000 on Facebook ads.
Government records show Christensen claimed $12,641 for e-material in the second quarter of last year, jumping to $33,500 in the third quarter as the controversial Queensland MP began ramping up his campaign against vaccine mandates. While the records do not indicate exactly how the money was spent, Facebook’s records show Christensen spending significant sums on advertising on the platform in the same period.
The expense reports are not yet available for the October to December period, but Facebook’s ad library shows Christensen spent a similar amount for the last quarter of the year, including an estimated $25,000 on a single ad that calls to “end the vaccine discrimination”.
The ad is a “demand [for] an end to all coercive measures by government and private corporations that force people to take a COVID-19 vaccine or else be denied services, rights or employment”. According to Facebook, the ad ran from November to January and had an audience reach of more than 1 million people.
He has also spent more than $10,000 on other anti-vaccine mandate advertisements, calling for an end to vaccine passes and passports, which he describes as “medical apartheid” and a “path to tyranny”.
Two separate ad campaigns costing up to $7,500 that ran from August through to December campaigned on the issue of “globalist elites”, who Christensen claims are using the pandemic “as an opportunity to fuse socialism and corporatism and embed it permanently into our economy and society”.
“In other words, an unelected global elite operating outside the law deciding for ordinary citizens how they will live, work, communicate and do business in the future.”
The ads, which had a reach of more than 800,000, link to one of Christensen’s websites which repeats key themes of the “great reset” conspiracy that has taken hold among rightwing groups in the US and Europe and targets “elites from the World Economic Forum”.
The website says the great reset “sounds like a conspiracy theory but it’s not”.
He also spent up to $5,000 on an advertisement promoting his private member’s bill which would have required doctors to provide assistance to foetuses with signs of life during an abortion. The ads had an estimated audience size of more than a million people.
Christensen’s commentary has become more controversial in the months since he announced he would not re-contest the Mackay-based seat of Dawson at the next federal election.
Guardian Australia reported last month that he had privately registered a business name and new website calling on people to “fight for our sovereignty”, fuelling speculation the outspoken MP was preparing to launch a new media brand.
He told a Prayer and Pushback event last month he would not leave politics after the election and would probably “step back” into the media landscape.
Under parliamentary expense rules, MPs can claim taxpayer funds for expenses for the dominant purpose of conducting parliamentary business. This includes electoral duties, which have a broad definition prescribed by the minister, including “facilitating and participating in debate” on matters of interest to constituents.
A spokesperson for the Department of Finance said it would not comment on the use of expenses by individual senators and members.
“Parliamentarians are allocated an annual budget for office expenses which can be used for the cost of communications, including e-communications,” the spokesperson said.
“All office expenses must be for the dominant purpose of conducting parliamentary business.
“Parliamentarians must personally certify that their use of office expenses complies with the PBR Act and Regulations.”
Christensen did not respond to questions from Guardian Australia, including as to whether the ads were funded by his e-communications budget.
Over the weekend, Christensen attended a large anti-vaccination rally in Canberra, posting a live stream of himself at the event saying he was attending along with people from “all walks of life”.
The Nationals deputy leader, David Littleproud, said on Monday that Christensen was a “free spirit”, who had the right to demonstrate, but he did not agree with him and did not think he should have attended.
“I’m not sure what his role was in that rally, but I don’t think it’s appropriate that he’s out there putting a message against medical advice – that’s not responsible and that’s irresponsible. And people need to understand that they should only take their advice from their doctor.
“Obviously we are trying to make sure that George understands the important role and privilege that he has in being a member of parliament. You should take that seriously and we shouldn’t be giving medical advice, only doctors should.”
Christensen was forced to step down from a committee role last month after he urged parents not to vaccinate their children. The call attracted a rare rebuke from the prime minister, Scott Morrison, who called Christensen’s views “dangerous” and advised people to ignore him.
