One Nation has launched its campaign for the Victorian state election, promising to fund law-and-order measures by scrapping the Suburban Rail Loop and Treaty.
One Nation Victoria leader Warren Pickering was joined at the launch by the party's national leader Pauline Hanson and its candidates for the upcoming election, as the party unveiled its policies.
The ABC was not invited to the campaign launch at Melbourne's Crown Casino, and was barred from entering the event.
Ms Hanson spent much of her speech attacking the incumbent Labor government's record on crime and Victoria's growing debt, saying Victorians had been "treated like mugs".
She also addressed comments made by Premier Ben Carroll, who last month said that the rise of One Nation in Victoria terrified him.
"If you're listening, Ben, don't be scared of me. I tell you what mate, he should be scared of you," Ms Hanson said, pointing to the gathered crowd.
Support for One Nation has surged in Victoria, with polling suggesting the party will seriously challenge both Labor and the Coalition in the upcoming election.
One Nation pledges boosts to law-and-order
Law-and-order measures featured as the centrepiece of One Nation's policy launch on Saturday, taking up the first several pages of a 63-page policy booklet.
One Nation has promised heavy investment into law-and-order including bolstering police numbers by recruiting ADF veterans through an accelerated program.
"The policy that I'm most proud of, and probably the most important to Victoria, is our crime policy," Mr Pickering said.
"We're proposing to utilise some of the estimated 10,000 suitably qualified contemporary veterans in this state to lean into the police force."
One Nation said it would target youth crime in the state by imposing harsher penalties on violent young offenders.
The party plans to reduce the age of criminal responsibility for children to 10 years old, charge young offenders of serious violent crimes as adults, and hold parents liable for fines and property damage caused by their children.
The party said it would introduce "carefully governed AI" to cut down on administrative burdens and free up frontline officers, while providing sign-on bonuses and accommodation allowances.
The judicial system has also been targeted for major investment under One Nation with pledges to increase the number of magistrates, fund a 24-hour bail court and build three new magistrates' courts in Melbourne's outer suburbs in a bid to speed up the judicial process.
It also promised to introduce UK-style self-defence in the home laws, and explore a "tightly controlled trial" of giving Victorians legal access to capsicum spray.
Suburban Rail Loop, net-zero and Treaty on the chopping block
One Nation said it would fund its investments with a range of cuts to government projects, agencies and services.
The party announced it would scrap the Suburban Rail Loop project, diverting the funds to infrastructure such as the Airport Rail line and the electrification of the Melton line.
Government agencies and public sector jobs would also be targeted for cuts under One Nation, with the party pledging to review the state's public entities and agencies, and introduce expiry dates for the bodies.
It also said First Peoples' representative body Gellung Warl would be abolished and the statewide Treaty scrapped.
Climate policies were also earmarked as targets for One Nation cuts.
The party pledged to scrap all net-zero targets and subsidies, cancel transmission projects such as the VNI West and Western Renewables Link and reverse the ban on gas connections in new homes.
One Nation said it would also repeal the statewide ban on nuclear energy.
But the party stopped short of committing to scrapping taxes, saying it would instead wind back land tax increases and increase the threshold for payroll tax.
Rival parties dismiss One Nation launch
Ms Hanson took aim at rival political parties during her speech on Saturday, saying Victorians now had trust issues with the Liberal Party and that the opposition had not done its job.
When asked about those comments, Opposition Leader Jess Wilson refused to mention Ms Hanson's party by name.
"I know that Victorians are looking for a change of government this year, and the only way to do that is to elect a Liberal and Nationals government," Ms Wilson said.
Government minister Nick Staikos dismissed the campaign launch by One Nation on Saturday entirely, saying it was "not a serious political party".
"We don't share anything in common with that party, we will not be making deals with that party," Mr Staikos said.
"They are importing the worst of American politics to our state."
A small group of protesters was seen outside the One Nation event on Saturday, with about two dozen people holding signs and banners claiming that the party was racist.
"We've seen Hanson calling for an end to immigration, she says mass immigration is a problem and we think that's absolutely scapegoating the problems," protester Julie Monteiro said.
