David Barrow.By Jade Lawton
LA TROBE Family First candidate David Barrow has been sensationally dumped by his party, and has entered talks with the Australian Sex Party.
In a dramatic leap from one end of the political spectrum to the other, Mr Barrow was disendorsed by Family First after posting extraordinary comments on Mia Freedman’s internet blog “Mama Mia”.
The certified practising accountant from Boronia wrote on the blog that a family was “a committed relationship between a man and a woman: Adam and Eve.”
He then added: “And it is also Adam and Steve – gay and lesbian couples – and Eve with Eve (even Eve with Eve if you will). So when it comes to families, Family First is a ‘broad church’ (in the modern secular sense of that term): heterosexual, gay and lesbian couples, as well as bi, trans and intersex.”
Family First booted Mr Barrow out of the party on Monday night.
He was due to launch his campaign outside Berwick’s Commonwealth Bank yesterday (Tuesday).
In a defiant show against the conservative Family First party, Mr Barrow announced he was meeting with Fiona Patten, leader of the Australian Sex Party, at Melbourne Airport yesterday.
The Australian Sex Party already has a candidate in La Trobe.
Family First Chairman Peter Lake said Mr Barrow had deliberately misled the party.
“Clearly the views expressed by Mr Barrow are not in accordance with the views of Family First and as a result, the party has disendorsed his candidacy, effective immediately,” he said.
The party informed Mr Barrow of the dumping via email after he failed to respond to phone calls.
“This is a regrettable incident; however, Family First is committed to moving ahead with a strong campaign and standing up for ordinary Australians on issues that are important to them,” Mr Lake said.
Mr Barrow said he would now run as an Independent, although his name was already printed on ballot papers with the Family First tag.
“It’s an egg that can’t be unscrambled,” Mr Barrow said.
“It’s a bit hard to know what they were on about. I was presented with a questionnaire and I had to put a tick, yes or no. “Things like do you support abortion and I ticked the no box but it is contextually based. It’s (permissible) when there is severe harm to the woman.
“As for gay marriage – I’m in support of equality of committed, loving relationships of co-dependant adults. One aspect of that are homosexual relationships. I would not say I am an advocate for gay marriage; I’m an advocate for equality.”
But Mr Barrow says his core policy is not about gay marriage or equal rights – his core promise is an ambitious pledge to redistribute 85 per cent of his parliamentary entitlements to the La Trobe electorate.
“This is fully costed, funded and guaranteed. I’m happy to work for minimum wage,” he said.
He said he signed up with Family First because he admired Senator Steven Fielding’s battle against the big banks.
Mr Barrow is currently fighting the Commonwealth Bank in the Federal Court for what he describes as ‘bank fee justice.’
“I’m really standing for mainstream values,” Mr Barrow said.
“The gay movement took the word gay, which had negative connotations, and they turned it around and appropriated it, so I guess I’m appropriating the term Family First. I’m the real family first.”
An AEC spokesman said there were no powers to change a nomination after it had been received.
