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One Nation has been plunged into disarray over immigration policy, with leader Pauline Hanson forced to intervene and shoot down MP David Farley’s stunning concession that the party’s headline migration figure would be scarcely different to the Albanese government’s target.
Farley sought to redefine the meaning of net overseas migration (NOM) in an interview on Sunday, arguing there was a “true form” of the figure that differs to the way it has long been officially calculated.
“Well, the raw number is not too different [to the government’s], but the reality is, where do we need them?” Farley told the ABC’s Insiders on Sunday.
“We don’t need them in the great urban metroplex. We need them out to be productive, working in agriculture, engineering, mining, etc.”
He continued: “I think the big difference is we’re focusing on what are the skills we need as a nation, where do we need these migrants to be? But the raw number is not too different.”
Labor and the Coalition leapt upon Farley’s comments to argue that One Nation was divided and lacking clarity on a crucial policy for the party, which has put slashing migration at the centre of its pitch to voters.
Amid confusion over its migration policy, One Nation last week clarified that its plan to cap visas was based on a net overseas migration target of 130,000 a year.
In his Insiders interview, Farley said this figure did not include a raft of key migrant categories and that these workers would add at least 100,000 people to the target.
“Well, what we’re doing is we’re focusing on the NOM in its true form, he said.
“Now, on top of the NOM, of course, we’ve got all the other programs that we run, the PALM program, which is important to my electorate of Farrer, the skilled registered aged care nurses etc are all very important,” he said.
The Pacific Australia Labour Mobility (PALM) scheme includes around 40,000 workers a year, he said, while aged care nurses would add around another 70,000 – plus more in the engineering and mechanical fields.
Migrants are included in the official NOM figure if they stay in the country for a total of 12 months within a 16-month window regardless of their visa category.
Farley, elected in a byelection in May, said that “at a minimum” there would be 100,000 extra migrants on top of One Nation’s130,000 target “but the 130,000 is what we call the ‘true NOM’” .
The federal government’s net overseas migration target is 245,000 for 2026-27 and 225,000 for each of the following two years, around the same as Farley’s total estimate of around 230,000.
Hanson rejected Farley’s assertion that the party’s migration target was similar to Labor’s in a lengthy social media post on Sunday afternoon, insisting: “One Nation’s policy is to cut net overseas migration to 130,000.
“The cuts will come from fewer international students and dependants, a dramatic reduction in temporary graduate visas and their dependants, and a much more targeted skilled migration program focused on the skills Australia genuinely needs … One Nation’s target is less than half Labor’s current level.”
Opposition Leader Angus Taylor said One Nation was “all over the shop” on migration policy as he accused Farley of proposing a migration target bigger than Labor’s.
He said the Coalition would go to the next election with a net overseas migration target “substantially below” 200,000.
“You have to get this right,” he said.
Coalition Home Affairs spokesman Jonno Duniam accused One Nation of making policy on the run on a totemic issue for the party.
“One Nation’s migration policy seems to change every time one of its MPs gets in front of a microphone,” Duniam said.
“It is unbelievable that, after years of One Nation campaigning on immigration, Australians still can’t get a straight answer about what their migration policy actually is.”
Energy Minister Chris Bowen accused Farley of being at odds with Hanson, who recently declared she doesn’t care if migration cuts affect Australian businesses.
He said Farley appeared to be “on board” with the government’s efforts to reduce migration while not harming businesses that rely on foreign labor.
Bowen said that “the numbers he was talking about are very similar to the numbers the government’s been working towards”.
“I’m not sure what One Nation is saying about immigration because it appears to me, based on what Mr Farley said, that One Nation now agrees with the approach of the government,” he said.
Abul Rizvi, a former deputy secretary of the Immigration Department, said the confusion showed the task of reducing migration numbers was more complex than One Nation’s rhetoric suggested.
“They are pulling numbers out of thin air,” he said, adding: “Pauline may be the most confused on this topic but so are Labor and the Coalition.”
Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke is preparing a major policy to reduce migration numbers after having to delay an announcement earlier this month because of cabinet concerns the process was being rushed.
Liberal housing spokesman Andrew Bragg has nominated under 180,000 as the size of net overseas migration under a Coalition government.
During this year’s byelection, Farley broke with party policy during a candidate forum by suggesting it was “probably not” an issue if Australia’s net migration reached 306,000.
“If we’re successful in One Nation’s water policies, we’re going to need more labour, and we’re going to need more labour quickly, skilled labour,” he said.
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Matthew Knott is the foreign affairs and national security correspondent for The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age.Connect via X, Facebook or email.From our partners
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