Activist group GetUp! readies for court battle against Coalition investigation
Adam Gartrell, Political Correspondent
Activist group GetUp! is readying itself for a costly legal battle to resist a push by Turnbull government MPs to have it declared a "front" for Labor and the Greens.
The left-wing group says the latest attempt to have it formally linked to the political parties is "the greatest threat our independent grassroots movement has ever faced".
A GetUp supporter hands out how-to-vote in the ACT in 2013. Photo: Scott Hannaford
Coalition MPs led by hard-right Liberal senator Eric Abetz want the Australian Electoral Commission to officially label GetUp! a partisan "associated entity" - the name given to unions and fundraising vehicles such as Parakeelia and the Cormack Foundation, which have direct links to a political party.
If that happened GetUp! would lose its independent status and be forced to lodge financial disclosure returns to the AEC or face possible criminal sanctions.
Conservative Liberal senator Eric Abetz has long been the most vocal critic of GetUp. Photo: Alex Ellinghausen
The group will issue a call to arms on Monday, sending an email to its estimated one million members asking for extra donations.
"To match their government-funded attack we need the legal firepower of an experienced law firm and one of the most respected barristers in the country. Can you help in the greatest hour of need for our independent movement?" national director Paul Oosting says in the email.
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"Imposing big legal expenses is a well-known tactic to take advocacy groups away from their campaign work. Already we've needed considerable advice from barristers and legal assistance, with costs mounting. If this goes all the way to court, those expenses will skyrocket."
