George Christensen claims $10,000 a month for ‘e-material’ as he ramps up anti-vaccine mandate Facebook ads

Taxpayers have been paying more than $10,000 a month for George Christensen's "e-material" in the same period that he racked up an $85,000 Facebook advertising bill for issues including vaccine discrimination, and a conspiracy theory about the "unelected global elite".

According to reports from the independent parliamentary expenses authority, Christensen claimed more than $50,000 for "e-material" over nine months in 2021, with the spend ramping up to an average of $11,000 a month from the middle of the year.

Over the past 18 months, Christensen has spent $85,000 on Facebook ads.

Government records show Christensen claimed $12,641 for e-material in the second quarter of last year, jumping to $33,500 in the third quarter as the controversial Queensland MP began ramping up his campaign against vaccine mandates. While the records do not indicate exactly how the money was spent, Facebook's records show Christensen spending significant sums on advertising on the platform in the same period.

The expense reports are not yet available for the October to December period, but Facebook's ad library shows Christensen spent a similar amount for the last quarter of the year, including an estimated $25,000 on a single ad that calls to "end the vaccine discrimination".

The ad is a "demand [for] an end to all coercive measures by government and private corporations that force people to take a COVID-19 vaccine or else be denied services, rights or employment". According to Facebook, the ad ran from November to January and had an audience reach of more than 1 million people.

He has also spent more than $10,000 on other anti-vaccine mandate advertisements, calling for an end to vaccine passes and passports, which he describes as "medical apartheid" and a "path to tyranny".