Bernie Finn

Finn was originally a member of the Democratic Labor Party (DLP). In 1980, aged 19, he was the DLP candidate for the federal seat of Corangamite.{{cite web|url=http://psephos.adam-carr.net/countries/a/australia/1980/1980repsvic.txt|title=1980 Election|website=Psephos|last=Carr|first=Adam}} Soon after, he left the DLP and joined the Liberal Party. In 1983 he was the Liberal candidate for the federal seat of Burke.{{cite web|url=http://psephos.adam-carr.net/countries/a/australia/1983/1983repsvic.txt|title=1983 Election|last=Carr|first=Adam|website=Psephos}}

Finn was the Member for the District of Tullamarine from 1992 until 1999 when he lost his seat in the Steve Bracks led victory over the Kennett Liberal Government.

Finn was the number one candidate on the Liberal Party of Australia ticket in the Western Metropolitan Region from 2006 to 2018. He was first elected to the Legislative Council in 2006 and re-elected in 2010, 2014 and 2018.

During the period of the Baillieu and Napthine governments, Finn served as Chairman of the Victorian Parliament's Electoral Matters Committee.[http://www.parliament.vic.gov.au/images/stories/Media_Release_Final_EMC.pdf Media release] parliament.vic.gov.au

Finn previously served on the Coalition frontbench as the Shadow Parliamentary Secretary for autism spectrum disorder, Shadow Parliamentary Secretary for Electoral Integrity and Shadow Parliamentary Secretary for Melbourne's West.

In 2018 Finn was involved in a controversy where he returned to vote on a bill despite having been granted a "pair" to be absent from voting due to religious observation.{{cite web|url=https://www.abc.net.au/news/2018-04-02/victorian-liberals-condemned-by-labor-over-pairing-betrayal/9610358?pfmredir=sm|title=Victorians 'betrayed' over Liberals pairing controversy, Acting Premier says|website=Australian Broadcasting Corporation |date=2 April 2018}}

In May 2022, Finn was expelled from the Victorian Liberal Party for "a series of inflammatory social media posts", including calling for abortion to be made illegal in all circumstances, and comparing the Victorian premier to Adolf Hitler.{{cite web | url=https://www.australianjewishnews.com/liberal-mp-slammed-over-nazi-comparison/ | title=Liberal MP slammed over Nazi comparison – the Australian Jewish News }}{{cite news | url=https://www.abc.net.au/news/2022-05-05/victorian-liberal-bernie-finn-praying-for-abortion-ban/101041168 | title=Victorian Liberal MP says he is 'praying' for abortion to be banned in wake of concern about US law change | newspaper=ABC News | date=5 May 2022 }}{{cite news | url=https://www.abc.net.au/news/2022-05-24/controversial-mp-bernie-finn-expelled-from-victorian-liberals/101093478 | title=Victorian Liberal MP who posted anti-abortion comments expelled from party | newspaper=ABC News | date=23 May 2022 }}

On 2 June, Finn rejoined the Democratic Labour Party and announced he would recontest the 2022 Victorian state election as the leader of the party.{{cite web|url=https://www.facebook.com/photo/?fbid=483184833603585&set=a.247088550546549|title=I'm mighty proud to announce I am now the State Leader of the Democratic Labour Party - a genuinely conservative labour party fighting for workers, small businesses, traditional families and regional Victoria.|work=Bernie Finn MP|publisher=Facebook|date=2 June 2022}}{{cite web|url=https://7news.com.au/politics/expelled-liberal-mp-finn-finds-new-party-c-7024479|title=Expelled Liberal MP Finn finds new party|work=7news.com.au|date=2 June 2022|author=Cassandra Morgan}} Finn was unsuccessful in his bid for re-election in 2022. Despite winning 5.16% of the vote, after preference distribution Finn narrowly missed out on re-election in the Western Metropolitan Region by only 210 votes, with Legalise Cannabis Party preferences instead electing a third Liberal candidate.{{cite web | url=https://www.abc.net.au/news/elections/vic/2022/guide/lc-results | title=Legislative Council Results - VIC Election 2022 | website=Australian Broadcasting Corporation }}

On 6 August 2023, Finn left the Democratic Labour Party and joined Family First Party.{{Cite web|url=https://www.facebook.com/familyfirstparty/posts/pfbid02SNurLrfdXTbaLhejRcUugjnin2HwNf4oFyJa6DaPaSu94463o5T7DJpGe51RGz98l|title=Facebook post|website=www.facebook.com}} {{better source|date=February 2024}}[https://familyfirstparty.org.au/media-release-former-liberal-bernie-finn-joins-family-first-to-run-for-senate/ Press release] Family First website He is running as a Victorian senate candidate in the 2025 Australian federal election.

Finn has drawn controversy for his political views. He has criticised abortion and been rebuked for his remarks that rape victims should not be allowed an abortion; former premier Denis Napthine, who like Finn voted against the 2008 abortion bill,{{cite web |url=http://www.prolife.org.au/election/ |title=The Victorian State Government Election |access-date=2015-03-30 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150331121712/http://www.prolife.org.au/election/ |archive-date=31 March 2015 |df=dmy-all }} called Finn's views "inappropriate."{{cite web|url=http://www.abc.net.au/news/2014-03-18/victorian-liberal-mp-says-no-abortions-for-rape-victims/5328448|title=Victorian Liberal MP Bernie Finn says no abortions for rape victims|work=ABC News|publisher=Australian Broadcasting Corporation|date=18 Mar 2014|author=Alison Savage}}{{cite web|url=http://www.theage.com.au/victoria/state-mp-bernie-finn-says-there-is-no-acceptable-reason-for-abortion-20140318-34z33.html|title=State MP Bernie Finn says there is no acceptable reason for abortion|date=18 March 2014|author=Josh Gordon and Henrietta Cook|work=The Age|publisher=Fairfax Media}} Finn is a strong opponent of same sex marriage, adoption,{{cite web|url=http://www.3aw.com.au/blogs/neil-mitchell-blog/should-gay-couples-be-able-to-adopt/20140527-3910w.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140729160949/http://www.3aw.com.au/blogs/neil-mitchell-blog/should-gay-couples-be-able-to-adopt/20140527-3910w.html|archive-date=29 July 2014|date=27 May 2014|title=Should gay couples be able to adopt?|quote=Liberal MP Bernie Finn has sparked fierce debate about same-sex couples adopting children after posting controversial anti gay-adoption comments on his Facebook page. Last week, state Labor voted in favour of changing the law, which could pave the way for homosexual couples to adopt if Daniel Andrews wins November's election. However, Mr Finn, MP for the Western Metropolitan Region, who is a Richmond supporter, said he'd join the Collingwood cheer squad before he'd ever support gay adoption, while in another post he asked for "proof" that having two mothers or two fathers wouldn't hurt children. Labor today lashed out at Mr Finn, saying the outspoken MP has offended hundreds of loving parents.|work=3AW Mornings}}{{cite web|url=http://www.starobserver.com.au/news/local-news/victoria-news/calls-for-premier-napthine-to-condemn-mp-over-same-sex-adoption-remarks/123518|title=Calls for Premier Napthine to condemn MP over same-sex adoption remarks|work=Star Observer|date=29 May 2014|author=Benjamin Riley}} and IVF. Finn suggested during the 2012 Australian Open that some ‘gay activists’ had "embarked on a program of rainbow fascism."{{cite web|url=http://global.christianpost.com/news/teenage-tennis-star-denies-making-gay-protest-at-australian-open-67425/|title=Teenage Tennis Star Denies Making Gay Protest at Australian Open|author=Benge Nsenduluka|date=18 January 2012|work=Christian Post|access-date=18 March 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140318104904/http://global.christianpost.com/news/teenage-tennis-star-denies-making-gay-protest-at-australian-open-67425/|archive-date=18 March 2014|url-status=dead}}{{cite web|url=http://www.starobserver.com.au/news/liberal-mp-hits-out-at-%E2%80%98rainbow-fascists%E2%80%99/69546|title=Liberal MP hits out at 'rainbow fascists'|work=Star Observer|date=16 Jan 2012|author=Andie Noonan}}{{cite web|url=http://www.theaustralian.com.au/national-affairs/mp-slams-open-rainbow-fascism/story-fn59niix-1226246809149|title=MP slams Open 'rainbow fascism' over Margaret Court|work=The Australian|date=18 Jan 2012|author=Chip Le Grand}}

Finn is a climate change denier and was a critic of the Gillard government's carbon pricing scheme, stating in the Victorian Parliament in 2013 that "there has been no global warming for 17 years". He has attacked the climate change documentary An Inconvenient Truth, as well as reports on the subject in the British newspaper The Guardian.{{cite web|url=http://www.parliament.vic.gov.au/images/stories/daily-hansard/Council_2013/Council_Daily_Extract_Wednesday_11_December_2013_from_Book_17.pdf|publisher=PARLIAMENT OF VICTORIA|title=PARLIAMENTARY DEBATES (HANSARD)|date=11 December 2013}} He has claimed that global warming is an invention of the "international left", saying that "it raised a few dollars and promoted its own political interests. It came up with a thing called global warming", which he labelled "nonsense". He went on to say that "we have to come to a conclusion that climate change is not so much a scientific thing as it is a political thing". Finn also told Parliament that "This is a con; the whole thing is a con. Today we are in the Parliament of Victoria wasting our time on something that is largely an invention of the left".

Finn supports reintroducing capital punishment for serious offences, including serious drug trafficking.{{Cite web|url=https://au.news.yahoo.com/mp-bernie-finn-calls-to-bring-back-death-penalty-for-drug-dealers-39823625.html|title=Liberal MP's call to bring back death penalty for drug dealers|date=12 April 2018 }}

Finn is a regular panellist on conservative television channel Sky News Australia and a frequent critic of the Black Lives Matter movement, climate science and members of what he views as ‘the left’, including American Democrats and the Australian Labor Party. Finn is a supporter of former US President Donald Trump and a believer of the Big Lie conspiracy.{{cite web|url=https://www.skynews.com.au/details/_6161894153001|title='America is finished if campaign to bring down Trump succeeds'|date=5 June 2020|publisher=Sky News Australia}} In January 2021, Finn was criticised for sharing conspiracy theories to his private Facebook page, falsely claiming Donald Trump was being "improperly" removed from office.{{Cite web|url=https://www.abc.net.au/news/2021-01-07/victorian-liberal-bernie-finn-donald-trump-election-posts/13039040|title = Victorian Liberal MP posts Trump conspiracy theories to Facebook| website=Australian Broadcasting Corporation |date = 7 January 2021}} Finn also falsely suggested that antifa were behind the storming of the US Capitol and repeated unsubstantiated claims of election fraud about the 2020 presidential election.{{Cite web|last=Ilanbey|first=Sumeyya|date=2021-01-08|title=Victorian Liberals confront Bernie Finn over pro-Trump social media posts|url=https://www.theage.com.au/politics/victoria/victorian-liberals-confront-bernie-finn-over-pro-trump-social-media-posts-20210108-p56srh.html|url-status=live|access-date=2021-10-18|website=The Age|language=en|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210108075308/https://www.theage.com.au/politics/victoria/victorian-liberals-confront-bernie-finn-over-pro-trump-social-media-posts-20210108-p56srh.html |archive-date=8 January 2021 }}

In February 2021 Finn, addressing the Reignite Democracy Australia Facebook group, criticised the COVID-19 pandemic lockdown measures imposed by the Victorian government, saying that maybe they were about hardline socialists' dislike of small businesses.{{cite web | title=Liberal MP Bernie Finn tells anti-lockdown protest Victorian restrictions were 'not about a virus' | url=https://www.abc.net.au/news/2021-02-18/victoria-liberal-mps-address-anti-coronavirus-lockdown-group/13165230 | date=18 February 2021 | author=Kristian Silva | work=ABC News}}

In May 2022, Finn expressed on Facebook that he is “praying” for abortion to be banned in Australia, following the release of the SCOTUS draft decision written by Justice Samuel Alito in Dobbs ([https://www.supremecourt.gov/docket/docketfiles/html/public/19-1392.html 19-1392]).[https://www.abc.net.au/news/2022-05-05/victorian-liberal-bernie-finn-praying-for-abortion-ban/101041168 Victorian Liberal MP 'praying' for abortion to be banned in wake of concern about US law change], Richard Willingham, ABC News Online, 2022-05-05

Before entering Parliament, Finn was a small businessman, broadcaster and a media and ministerial adviser to Chris Pearce. He is married with six children.{{cite web|title=Bernard (Bernie) Finn|url=http://www.parliament.vic.gov.au/members/details/28-mr-bernard-finn|website=Parliament.vic.gov.au|publisher=Parliament of Victoria|access-date=3 September 2014}}

{{Reflist}}

• {{Official website}}

{{s-start}}

{{s-par|au-vic-la}}

|-

{{s-non | reason=District created}}

{{s-ttl | title=Member for Tullamarine | years=1992–1999}}

{{s-aft | after=Liz Beattie}}

{{s-end}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Finn, Bernie}}

Category:1961 births

Category:21st-century Australian politicians

Category:Australian monarchists

Category:Liberal Party of Australia members of the Parliament of Victoria

Category:Democratic Labor Party (New) members of the Parliament of Victoria

Category:Living people

Category:Members of the Victorian Legislative Assembly

Category:Members of the Victorian Legislative Council

Category:Australian anti-abortion activists

Category:Right-wing politics in Australia