It follows the reversal of a ban against outspoken campaigner Drew Pavlou after he was booted out from a public area within Parliament House.

Canadian psychologist Jordan Peterson visited visited Canberra on Thursday to speak to an audience of around 100 conservative politicians and members of the public organised by Nationals senator Matt Canavan.

Dr Peterson jokingly said on social media he was here to spread his "hateful message of faith, maturity and personal responsibility among Australian politicos".

Opposition defence spokesperson Andrew Hastie said he enjoyed listening to Dr Peterson, alongside his colleagues, which included former prime minister Scott Morrison and NT senator Jacinta Nampijinpa Price.

"Democracy is about the contest of ideas. You don't have to agree with everything that people say but you have to be prepared to listen," Mr Hastie said on social media.

Former Liberal senator Zed Seselja was also in attendance along with deputy opposition leader Sussan Ley, backbencher Alex Hawke and Nationals MPs Perin Davey and Barnaby Joyce.

Members in military dress can also be seen watching from the public gallery, according to pictures published by Senator Canavan.

But the conservative figure's arrival in Canberra incited a more mixed response beyond the Coalition's social media pages.

Dr Peterson rose to fame in recent years for his arguments against "feminising" men in society and for comments made against the trans community.

Greens senator Larissa Waters joked she had been snubbed from the event while former Liberal Party staffer Rachelle Miller also joked it was the latest "Coalition initiative to win back female votes".

Senator Canavan dismissed the criticism against Dr Peterson's appearance as a "lefty meltdown", later telling the ABC he has "very good arguments".

"I think what he has to say is resonated with millions of people around the world," the senator said.

"He has, as you say, been a controversial figure. I don't exactly know why sometimes.

"As somebody said to me in the last 24 hours, what Jordan says is pretty much what their grandfather used to tell them."

On Wednesday, Mr Pavlou, a prominent critic of China's human rights abuses, was asked to leave the Queen's Terrace cafe by federal police, who told him he was deemed a "high risk" of protesting and cited a decision by "higher ups".

It's unclear who ordered the man be removed from the public cafe.