Hunter One Nation senator Brian Burston has quit the party following weeks of bitter words with his leader Pauline Hanson over his decision to back the federal government's tax reforms.
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Senator Burston announced his resignation on Thursday, leaving One Nation with only two members as the federal government builds its numbers in the upper house for crucial votes over the next two weeks.
"It is with a heavy heart that I announce that I am resigning from Pauline Hanson's One Nation Party," Senator Burston said in a draft of the statement.
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"The best way forward for me to represent the best interest of the constituents of NSW with honour and integrity is for me to resign from PHON.
"There is no democracy in the party - every single decision made is made by Pauline Hanson, and if you don't agree then you're gone."
Senator Burston will sit as an independent and vows to continue representing his home state of NSW.
Senator Burston told Fairfax Media that Senator Hanson’s unfettered control over the organisation and its elected members meant the party would fail unless it changed.
More to come.
Australian Associated Press & Fairfax Media