Hanson forced to intervene after One Nation MP says party’s migration target ‘not too different’ from Labor’s

The One Nation MP David Farley says the minor party’s net migration target is “not too different” to Labor’s, forcing his leader to issue an urgent clarification amid rising confusion over the policy.

Appearing on the ABC’s Insiders program on Sunday morning, Farley argued skilled workers and backpackers were critical to keeping Australia fed, and argued they should be considered as a separate category to migration “in its true form”. Farley said One Nation’s Nom target remained 130,000. But he said that figure did not include skilled workers, backpackers and Pacific and Timor-Leste labour through the Pacific Australia Labour Mobility (Palm) scheme.

But Hanson issued an implied rebuke on Sunday afternoon, with a post on social media insisting “One Nation’s policy is to cut net overseas migration to 130,000”.

This is the second time Hanson has had to issue a correction after Farley seemed to contradict One Nation’s restrictive approach to immigration. The party has struggled to define its migration policy, with inconsistent messaging over whether its target figure represents net overseas migration (Nom) or permanent migration.