Exclusive Brethren head denies knowing church members were volunteering for Liberal party during 2025 election

Exclusive Brethren head denies involvement in Liberal party volunteers during 2025 election

The full report

The most senior member of the Exclusive Brethren, Bruce Hales, has denied any knowledge of or involvement in thousands of members from his church volunteering for the Liberal party at the 2025 election.

The Plymouth Brethren Christian Church has rejected claims it coordinated volunteers and a campaign for the Coalition, and that it secretly paid far-right figures to stage stunts against the prime minister and other Labor MPs.

A parliamentary committee hearing on Friday was marred by clashes, with members of the committee accusing one another of 'religious persecution' and 'running a protection racket' for the church.

Bruce Hales stated he had no involvement or knowledge of church members volunteering for the Coalition, and denied that his church was a cult, a term used by the prime minister.

Gareth Hales, Bruce's son, also appeared before the committee and said it was 'a bit rough' being labelled as such, while denying reports his company Sante Global paid far-right activists to disrupt other campaigns.

The committee hearing was marked by turmoil, with Coalition members likening questioning by Labor and crossbench MPs to a 'Spanish inquisition'.