Pauline Hanson has been forced into damage control after One Nation lower house MP David Farley outlined a third version of the party’s immigration policy in as many weeks.

Senior party figures have offered conflicting explanations about whether the party wants net overseas migration (NOM) hard cut to 130,000 people a year, or whether some migrant categories would sit outside that target.

Farley, who won the Farrer by-election earlier this year following the resignation of former Liberal leader Sussan Ley, told ABC’s Insiders on Sunday that One Nation’s policy would effectively allow migration levels of about 230,000 people a year.

Pressed by host David Speers to clarify the party’s position, Farley said One Nation’s target was ‘130,000 net overseas migration’ but also argued major worker programs should be treated separately from what he described as the ‘true NOM’.

The Farrer MP said One Nation did support a NOM target of 130,000, but it would allow at least another 100,000 migrants into the country through worker schemes covering sectors such as agriculture, aged care and other skilled occupations.

‘What we’re doing is we’re focusing on the NOM in its true form, and then we’ve got these programs that have (also) been available now for over a decade, that drive our economy,’ Farley said.

Pressed on how many arrivals would come through those programs, Farley pointed to Pacific Australia Labour Mobility workers, aged-care nurses and technical workers.

‘You take the PALM programme in itself, that’s about 40,000 a year. You take the skilled aged-care nurses, probably 68,000 to 70,000 a year,’ he said.

One Nation leader Pauline Hanson (above) is working to clarify her party’s immigration policy after an MP cast doubt over its hardline 130,000 cap

When Speers asked whether that amounted to ‘130,000 plus about 100,000 more,’ Farley replied: ‘Yeah. It’s 130,000 plus 100,000. It’s … a minimum.’

Farley later acknowledged that overall figure was strikingly similar to the Labor government’s migration forecasts.

‘The raw number’s not too different,’ he said.

‘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?’

The comments would have One Nation backing migration levels above the Federal Budget forecast of 225,000 a year from 2027-28.

Hanson moved quickly to shut down Farley’s interpretation, issuing a statement reaffirming that One Nation’s policy remained a NOM target of 130,000.

‘One Nation’s policy is to cut net overseas migration to 130,000,’ Hanson said.

‘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 MP David Farley (above) said his party’s proposed net overseas migration target was ‘130,000 plus about 100,000 more’

‘Short-term seasonal agricultural workers who do not meet the ABS residency test are not counted in net overseas migration.

‘They come for limited periods, often live on farms or regional properties while they work, and return home.’

‘One Nation’s target is less than half Labor’s current level.’

‘Labor opened the floodgates to mass migration and has repeatedly blown its own migration forecasts since coming to government.

‘Australians are living with the consequences. Homes are less affordable, emergency departments are overwhelmed, roads are more congested and essential services are stretched beyond capacity.’

Cabinet minister Chris Bowen said NOM could not just be redefined.

‘My overwhelming conclusion was (David Farley is) pretty comfortable with what the government’s doing,’ he told reporters.

‘I’m not sure what campaign One Nation’s going to run on migration if they’re effectively backing in what the Albanese government is doing.’

Chris Bowen (left with Anthony Albanese) said Farley seem to agree with Labor’s numbers

Opposition immigration spokesman Jonno Duniam said voters were owed a clear explanation of what One Nation’s immigration policy actually was.

‘These are not semantic distinctions. They have real consequences for housing, infrastructure, essential services, wages, jobs and the economy,’ he said.

‘For a party that has spent years telling Australians it has all the answers on immigration, One Nation is having extraordinary difficulty answering the most basic question of all: how many migrants would actually come to Australia under its policy.’

Opinion polls have shown voters trust One Nation to manage migration better than the two major parties.

NOM measures the difference between arrivals and departures of people who stay in Australia for at least 12 months during a 16-month period.

The federal budget forecasts NOM of 245,000 in 2026-27 before falling to 225,000 in each of the following four years.

The Albanese government has struggled to bring migration down as quickly as forecast, with annual NOM still tracking above 300,000. 

Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke is preparing a major migration package aimed at bringing figures back towards budget projections.

Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke (right) is working on Labor’s amended migration policy

The confusion is the latest twist in a series of contradictory statements from One Nation figures.

Earlier this month Hanson told The Sydney Morning Herald she wanted net migration at ‘about 130,000’.

Days later, One Nation MP for New England, Barnaby Joyce, also said the party’s 130,000 figure applied to net migration and not visa numbers.

Those statements represented a significant shift from the party’s official website.

That still promises to ‘cut immigration by over 570,000 people from current Labor levels by capping visas at 130,000 per year’.

The party has previously advocated even sharper reductions. 

In December last year Hanson publicly called for the deportation of 100,000 people living unlawfully in Australia.

She even argued for net-negative migration.

One Nation Senator Tyron Whitten has also defended the party’s longstanding call for a five-year Net Zero migration plebiscite.

One Nation senator Barnaby Joyce (above) earlier said the 130,000 cap applied to net migration and not visa numbers

Farley has also previously been unclear with the numbers.

In May he declared Australia must ‘slash immigration’ to reduce housing demand and put Australians first, while during the Farrer by-election campaign he suggested migration levels above 300,000 were ‘probably not’ too high.