LNP creates 'Chinese only' branch on the Gold Coast

Members of the Gold Coast LNP Chinese Heritage Branch

by Jeremy Pierce

A CHINESE-only branch of the Liberal National Party has formed on the Gold Coast, dividing the party faithful.

The Gold Coast LNP Chinese Heritage Branch has just held its first meeting, with dozens of members joining several sitting MPs for the inauguration.

The new branch comes just weeks after the launch of a similar splinter group in the Brisbane suburb of Sunnybank, and is reminiscent of the influx of Chinese members to the party's federal Ryan branch when Chinese Australian Michael Johnson was MP.

While LNP officials have embraced the enthusiasm of the new Chinese supporters, some rank-and-file party members are not impressed, questioning why they wouldn't just join existing branches.

"We welcome Chinese members, or members of any racial background, but having their own branch is more like segregation than integration," one member told The Sunday Mail.

"There's a lot of people quite uncomfortable with it."