“They don’t even need to speak,” said Ms Lambie, a 43-year-old single mother of two.

The outspoken senator, who took up her position earlier this month, is a member of tycoon Clive Palmer’s new party, which has three seats on the cross-bench in Australia’s senate, or upper house. The somewhat unpredictable and unruly party has so far proven an obstacle for Tony Abbott, who does not have a majority in the senate and has frequently counted on the backing of Mr Palmer’s party.

In a radio interview in her home state of Tasmania, Ms Lambie told Heart FM that her ideal partner “must have heaps of cash and they’ve got to have a package between their legs”.