# Gerard Rennick People First

Gerard Rennick People First, also known as the People First Party (PFP), is an Australian political party founded by Queensland senator Gerard Rennick in August 2024. Rennick was elected to the Senate as a Liberal National Party of Queensland candidate in 2019. Gerard Rennick People First was officially registered by the Australian Electoral Commission (AEC) on 5 December 2024, and plans to contest the 2025 federal election.

## Background

Beginning in 2021, Liberal National Party (LNP) senator Gerard Rennick began to receive criticism for his social media posts and his stance toward both federal and state government measures taken around the COVID-19 pandemic in Australia. This included Rennick's alleged criticism of state border closures and state vaccine mandates as well as an exemption for children's vaccination, and the MPs desire to end travel restrictions. Rennick's critical stance toward government policy continued throughout 2021–2022, and was labelled a "rebel" right-wing MP. By early July 2023 Rennick narrowly lost preselection for the LNP's Senate ticket at the next federal election (2025).
In August 2024 Rennick, quit the LNP and announced a new political party to contest the 2025 federal election. Several months later in December 2024, the party was officially registered by the Australian Electoral Commission (AEC).

## Beliefs and policies

Rennick is a right-wing to far-right politician. He describes himself as a protectionist and on economic policy said he favoured a "protectionist nationalist" form of capitalism.
Rennick, an accountant by trade, has claimed Australia's current rate of withholding tax provided an incentive for multinational firms to "ship their profits offshore", and called for lowering the company tax rate to 12%, more than half its current rate (2019). He also cited Australia's system of corporate revenue collection was "why I really want to run" for Parliament. Rennick has also called for scrapping franking credits, stating: "So, if you really wanted to reform the tax system... you should get rid of franking credits altogether and just have a lower, flatter company tax rate."

### Policies

* Withdrawal of Australia from the World Health Organisation (WHO).
* Remove all funding and references to climate change.
* Drop net-zero and leave the Paris Agreement.
* Supports coal, nuclear, gas and hydro energy.
* Raising the tax-free threshold from $18,200 to $40,000.
* Giving childcare subsidy payments directly to parents (subject to welfare checks).
* Advocate that superannuation be voluntary and use the savings to lift the pension.
* Call a Federal Convention to streamline the duplication of roles and responsibilities of State and Federal Governments.
* Advocate to means-test the gold-plated pensions of retired white-collared public servants.
* Abolish the Climate Change Department and subsidies for renewables.
* Reinstatement of a public bank (similar to the Commonwealth Bank between 1911 and 1991) and reintroduce a Government Insurance Office.
* Establishing a "Infrastructure Bank", which would issue bonds to the Federal and State Governments for seven types of Infrastructure – Dams, Baseload Power Stations (not renewables), Roads, Rail, Ports, Airports and Telecommunications.
* Abolish the "Multicultural Department".
* Lower the corporate tax rate to 25%.