Clive Palmer is back as a political force in Australia, propelled by an advertising campaign that has cost at least $30m since September. The United Australia Party (UAP) has reached double digits in some single-seat polls, including 14% in Herbert, the electorate centred on Townsville where 800 workers lost their jobs at Palmer's Queensland Nickel.
UAP sealed a preference deal with the Coalition on Thursday, boosting the Liberals and Nationals in key marginals and giving Palmer a better chance of winning a Senate seat in Queensland. Brian Burston, the One Nation defector leading the UAP Senate ticket in New South Wales, said candidates have signed contracts to prevent a repeat of the 2013 exodus when Jacqui Lambie and Glenn Lazarus quit Palmer's party after entering the Senate.
Palmer faces legal challenges including an Australian Securities and Investment Commission charge for alleged breach of the criminal code over a proposed takeover at his Sunshine Coast resort, which could disqualify him from parliament if convicted. Meanwhile, former Queensland Nickel workers are still owed $7m, which Palmer says he has paid into a trust fund to be disbursed after the election.
UAP policies include a 20% tax cut for regional Australians, making mortgage payments tax deductible for primary residences, investment in high-speed rail, and economic nationalism to bring jobs back. However, a decision to print campaign shirts in China undercuts the message. Candidates say the party's pitch targets the hip pocket, while Labor Senator Murray Watt called the economic proposals a stunt that would bankrupt the country.
