Labor is demanding that Tony Abbott stop Coalition MP George Christensen from addressing a “racist” Reclaim Australia rally this weekend.

Christensen has said that “hell will freeze over” before he pulls out of the rally in Mackay on Sunday.



The opposition immigration spokesman, Richard Marles, said it was “extraordinary” that Abbott was allowing MPs to attend “racist” rallies while inflicting a boycott on the ABC’s Q&A program.

Fellow Liberal National party Senator Matthew Canavan defended Christensen’s planned appearance at the Reclaim Australia rally in Mackay on Sunday, where he will be speaking alongside former One Nation MP Pauline Hanson.

Christensen, the federal MP for Dawson, intends to speak at the rally in Mackay on Sunday.

Canavan said MPs should be allowed to address the serious problem of radicalisation. “George is perfectly free, big enough and ugly enough to look after himself. I think George should be judged on what he says, not who he stands next to,” he said.

The Melbourne rally on Saturday was marked by violent scuffles, while in Adelaide counterprotesters outnumbered Reclaim Australia supporters. Hundreds of police were on hand in Melbourne attempting to prevent violence between the two sides.

Police used capsicum spray to quell crowds and mounted police were used to divide the rival groups.

Reclaim Australia advocates the closure of mosques and Islamic schools and the ending of halal food certification in a bid to end radicalisation. Slogans suggested for signs on the group’s website include “Stop Islamic Terrorism”, “Reclaim Democracy” and “Our Women Are Equal”.

Concerns about violence prompted one anti-Islam group to issue a warning to its members about the rallies. “We trust the organisers of these rallies to be well meaning, but they have only limited control over such public gatherings,” the Q Society said in an email to its membership.