Just when you thought Canberra couldn’t turn into more of a circus, Pauline Hanson turned it into a fancy-dress party. Yes, really.

Today, Hanson arrived wearing a full-face covering as the stunned Senate looked on with wide eyes and open mouths.

“We’ve been assured by you that the Clerk [has identified this person here as Senator Hanson,” said Derryn Hinch. “As a point of order, I would like to know if Senator Hanson can stay here unchallenged. I understand she is not a Muslim. She is not of the Islamic faith. Can I appear tomorrow in fancy dress unchallenged?”

Attorney General George Brandis slammed her saying, “Senator Hanson, no, we will not be banning the burqua… We have about half a million Australians of the Islamic faith in this country, and the vast majority of them are law-abiding good Australians.”

Even the Greens gave him an ovation.

Hanson, what are you doing?

If there’s a quick, sure-fire way to unite one nation against you, you’ve cracked it.

A statement on her Facebook page read, “Senator Hanson said that she believed that full face covering, such as the burqua, were oppressive, presented barriers to assimilation, disadvantaged women from finding employment, were causing issues inside our justice system, presented a clear security threat and had no place in modern Western society.”

Do you know what else has no place in modern Western society? Stunts like this.

When did the Senate turn into Saturday Night Live?

Seriously, shouldn’t parliament be talking about important issues seriously?

Illustration: Twitter.

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