Pauline Hanson has hit back at Angus Taylor after the opposition leader launched a scathing attack against the One Nation leader, accusing the Coalition of adopting her party's policies.
Taylor's Warning on One Nation
In a speech on Thursday night at the Sydney Institute, Taylor issued a stark warning to Australians, describing Hanson's party as "a column of smoke". He said One Nation claims to offer a way out of the national malaise but would only make things worse. "Long on rhetoric but short on substance, One Nation's offering is a random grab bag of poorly defined, contradictory and constantly changing positions that leave no clear sense of who they are or what they stand for," Taylor said. He added that many have lost hope, looking left at a government that lies to them and right at an opposition that has let them down too many times.
Hanson's Response
In a video shared on X, Hanson hit back at Taylor's comments, claiming the opposition has adopted several policies from her party. "You can reflect back on your budget reply speech. You picked up and said a lot of One Nation's policies, so, I don't agree with you having a go at me and what I stand for," she said. "Reduction of immigration... you followed our lead. Net zero, again, you followed our lead..."
Call for Unity
Hanson also called for unity, arguing the Coalition and One Nation shared the same objective of removing Labor from power. "Angus, we both need to get rid of the Labor Party and the Greens. This toxic government that has done so much damage to this country," she said. Support for the Coalition has crashed to record lows in recent opinion polls, and it now trails One Nation. However, Hanson's party has also lost some backing following her controversial address to the National Press Club in June, when she called for Australia to become a monoculture.
