One Nation candidate faces charges and business deregistrations

This article has been co-published with Crikey.

A One Nation candidate running for Victorian Parliament at the November state election has been charged under Victoria’s public health regulations for allegedly running an unregistered aquatic facility at one of his businesses.  

Court records show Ben Lucas, One Nation’s candidate for Narracan in regional Victoria, will appear in Latrobe Valley Magistrates’ Court on Friday on two charges relating to allegedly operating a “Category 1” aquatic facility at a business in Drouin without registering it with the local council. 

As first noted by Warragul & Drouin Gazette, the charges follow an investigation by the Public Health Officer at Baw Baw Shire Council, where Lucas happens to be a councillor and is currently on a leave of absence.

"Category 1" facilities in a retail business are typically a swimming pool or spa used by the public or in connection with a fitness class or program.  Lucas’ council interest disclosures show he owns a wellness centre in Drouin called Zen Den, which operated a spa and three ice baths before it was folded into his gym, The Fitness Factory, which operates from the same address. 

Public aquatic facilities in Victoria face strict compliance requirements, including daily water testing, due to the health risks. The Victorian Department of Health warns “bathers can be affected by disease-causing microorganisms (pathogens) … through contaminated pool water”, and that pathogens are a particular risk to vulnerable groups “such as young children, the elderly and people with low immunity”.

A pathogen often found in contaminated aquatic facilities is the parasite Cryptosporidium, which causes gastro and can lead to bathers suffering watery diarrhoea, stomach cramps, fever and vomiting, among other symptoms. A gastro outbreak in Australia in 2024 led to the closure of some pools in Victoria, NSW and Queensland.

We put a detailed list of questions to Lucas about his upcoming court appearance. He told Crikey, “Facts are that the shire does not litigate many, if any, of these types of matters per year — the fact I’m a current shire councillor and involved in politics is a strange coincidence. We’ll see what happens and comes from court.”

Crikey asked One Nation leader Pauline Hanson whether the party was aware of the charges against its candidate. Despite repeated messages to her office, she didn’t respond. 

In June, the corporate regulator ASIC commenced deregistering Lucas’s wellness company The Zen Den Rest and Recover Warragul Pty Ltd under section 601AB of the Corporations Act 2001. Such deregistrations are commonly due to a company not paying its annual review fee within 12 months of the due date. ASIC can also deregister a company if it ceases to operate a business or hasn’t paid its industry levies.

The company was struck off in August and no longer exists as a legal entity, although Lucas still lists Zen Den classes at his Fitness Factory gym. On Wednesday morning, the gym ran a one-hour Zen Den Rest and Recovery session. 

ASIC has also commenced deregistering Lucas’s other company, Dojo Enterprises Pty Ltd, which corporate filings show is the primary business contact for the business name Drouin Fitness Factory. If Dojo Enterprises is struck off, this won’t necessarily affect the continued operation of the gym, as a separate entity, The Trustee for MDR Dojo Unit Trust, holds its assets.

This week Lucas appeared alongside One Nation leader Pauline Hanson and the party’s Victorian leader Warren Pickering at coal-fired Loy Yang Power Station. If it forms government in November, One Nation committed to keep the plant open beyond its scheduled closure in 2035 and to scrap Victoria’s nuclear energy ban.  

Lucas said, “It’s the symbiotic approach of this policy that will raise the standard of living for all Victorians … there are people in our community that have to choose between putting the heater on or putting food on the table — this policy will help solve that.”

Even in the event One Nation were able to scrap Victoria’s ban, Commonwealth legislation would still prohibit nuclear power plants.