- Calls for migration cap of 130,000 annually
- Slams skilled migration settings as a ‘scam’
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One Nation leader Pauline Hanson said Australia doesn’t need any more Uber drivers, nail technicians or dog walkers migrating from overseas.
‘It’s been an absolute scam, we’ve allowed these people in,’ she said.
‘Why bring in so many people that don’t fit the needs that we want in Australia? We don’t need any more Uber drivers, nail technicians, dog walkers. These people gone. Stop all that.’
In an interview with News24 host Laura Jayes, Hanson said Australia was being overwhelmed by high migration levels and called for annual permanent migration to be capped at 130,000 people.
Asked if she was in favour of changing to the skills list for visa approvals, she said: ‘The skills list. Very, very important. Who is going to ruin the country? Doctors, nurses, engineers – those people that are going to benefit our country.’
Hanson argued Australia needed to slow migration growth to ease pressure on housing and infrastructure.
‘At the moment, we are overwhelmed. We need to have a breather,’ she said.
‘I’m not saying 130,000 permanently on the books forever. Let’s review it every year.’
Pauline Hanson (pictured) called for permanent migration to be reduced to 130,000 annually
The federal government’s 2026-27 permanent Migration Program remains set at 185,000 places, with the majority allocated to skilled migrants.
Under the current settings, 132,240 places, or about 71 per cent of the program, are reserved for skilled migrants, including employer-sponsored workers and independent skilled visa holders.
A further 52,460 places are allocated to family visas, while 300 places are set aside under a special eligibility category.
Hanson argued Australia’s migration program should focus more heavily on workers in critical industries, claiming too few arrivals possess the skills needed to address labour shortages.
‘Doctors, nurses, engineers, those people that are going to benefit our country,’ she said.
Despite calling for lower permanent migration, Hanson said she would continue to allow backpackers and other temporary visa holders to enter Australia.
‘We would still allow for backpackers, those workers coming to Australia, those ones that will be here for a short period of time,’ she said.
The Queensland senator linked her migration policy to Australia’s housing crisis, claiming she had witnessed families living in cars and tents.
‘I’ve got people just down the road from me. I pulled up the other day, homeless, three years living in their cars,’ Hanson said.
‘I went to a park and I saw homeless families. Families.
‘It is a crying shame in a perceived country like us that’s supposed to be wealthy that we have families living in tents, and especially children. Children should not be living like this.’
