One Nation leader Pauline Hanson has vowed to ban the burqa from banks and government buildings if her party wins influence in the next Queensland state election, due to be held in 2018.
“We have some big plans and ideas, and you know what I’m going to do – we’re going to investigate it – ban the burqa in government buildings and banks and schools in Queensland," Senator Hanson said on Sky News.
“We’re going to lead the way in Queensland.”
The burqa is a religious veil which covers the entire body or face of a woman, with a mesh panel across the eyes to enable vision.
“No drivers licences wearing the burqa or anything like that,” Senator Hanson said, despite that already being the case.
Any form of face covering is not permitted by the Queensland Department of Transport and Main Roads.
“If you wear headwear for religious reasons, it must be adjusted so that all facial features from the bottom of your chin to top of your forehead (including both edges of your face) are clearly shown,” current guidance states.
Six countries currently have some form of restriction on the burqa, while several others have bans in process.
political ideology and not a religion – and a ban on new mosque construction.
ASIO has provided advice to the government that a burqa ban is likely to increase tensions and aid extremists.
"The security implications of any such ban are likely to be predominantly, if not wholly, negative," a 2011 report said.
One Nation, which plans to field more than 30 candidates in the Queensland state election, is polling at 16 per cent according to a recent Courier Mail report.
Internal polling by the Labor and Liberal parties shows One Nation eating into their base, the report says.
The Queensland branch of One Nation dropped candidate Shan Ju Lin earlier this month after anti-gay comments, while another candidate offered to resign over his blog posts on conspiracy theories about the Port Arthur massacre and a drowned Syrian toddler.
