The High Court of Australia has confirmed that politicians can brazenly lie at elections with impunity.

(See Evans v Crichton-Browne, 1981)

Under the Electoral Act, The High Court confirmed candidates can say what they like to get your vote. And if they are elected on their lies, you have no opportunity to do anything about it until they come up for re-election. And they know it! So what can the poor voters do?

Well, if the pollies can't be sued under the Electoral Act, how about suing their political parties under civil or criminal law? Can it be done? Consider this:

Political parties who win 4% or more of the total vote receive an indexed grant from the public purse for each vote cast in their favour - currently it's almost $2.00 per vote. This amounts to tens of millions of dollars at every Federal election (they also get similar grants for State elections).

A political party endorses candidates to represent it at elections. The candidates' job is to expound and drum up support for the party's platform. If, after the election, it is found a party - through its approved candidates - lied, prevaricated, dissembled, or otherwise misled you to get your vote AND YOUR $2.00, shouldn't you have the right to sue? You'd certainly be able to sue in the commercial world if you were persuaded to buy a product based on misrepresentation. So why not political parties who fraudulently obtain financial gain?

I'd like to see a class action mounted to test this proposition. So, all you lawyers out there, how about it?