Nat Barr grills Barnaby Joyce over One Nation’s migration target after MP’s policy blunder

Nat Barr has grilled Barnaby Joyce over One Nation ’s migration policy after a newly elected MP sparked confusion about how many people it would allow into the country each year.

One Nation’s Farrer MP David Farley suggested the party’s proposed migration intake was “not too different” from Labor’s target.

The party has publicised a net overseas migration target of 130,000, well below the federal government’s forecast of 225,000.

However, Farley claimed the figure excluded at least 100,000 skilled workers entering Australia under established visa schemes, which appeared to take One Nation’s effective intake to about 230,000.

That would put the party broadly in line with the government’s forecast.

In a heated Sunrise interview on Monday, Barr pressed Joyce over the conflicting figures.

“If you’re in Australia for 12 months or less out of 16, and a lot of visa holders are, that’s not included in the NOM [net overseas migration],” he said.

Barr continued questioning Joyce over whether permanent migrants and skilled workers would be counted within the party’s target.

“If there’s permanent migration, it fits within that number, that’s why its called net,” he said.

Asked whether Farley had misspoken, Joyce acknowledged his colleague had made a mistake. “Show me a political career where people haven’t made a mistake and I’ll show you a person who’s not talking the truth,” he said.

“When people are new in parliament they can sometimes get things incorrect and that’s what happens.

Social Services Minister Tanya Plibersek seized on the confusion, accusing One Nation of failing to present a consistent migration policy.

“If there’s three One Nation MPs in a room, there’s three different immigration policies,” she said.

Plibersek said about 70 per cent of the government’s migration intake comprised skilled visa holders, many of whom were already living and working in Australia before obtaining their visas.