Liberal Reform Group

The Liberal Reform Group, later known as the Australian Reform Movement, was a minor Australian political party and predecessor to the Australia Party, which in turn was a predecessor to the Australian Democrats. It was founded by Gordon Barton, transport entrepreneur Ken Thomas, shark meshing contractor Nickolai Gorshenin, writer Kenneth Cook and a number of disaffected members of the Liberal Party, alienated by the Liberals' support for conscription in the Vietnam War.[1] After contesting the 1966 federal election as the Liberal Reform Group, the party contested the 1967 Senate election as the Australian Reform Movement, but had become the Australia Party by 1969.