Arabic version: تحذير لحزب العمال من الاستهانة ببولين هانسون

According to The Guardian, Pauline Hanson and One Nation were a major focus at Labor’s national conference in Adelaide as Anthony Albanese sought to build support for a third term. Political editor Tom McIlroy argued that the party’s recent polling strength means both Albanese and opposition leader Angus Taylor face a significant challenge from Hanson’s populist project.

The article said Hanson returned from a European tour, during which she met conservative and far-right figures in Britain and visited Sicily with billionaire Gina Rinehart. It also reported that Hanson criticised a Channel 7 Spotlight profile and drew condemnation after describing domestic violence as a “two-way street”. Family violence experts said the language could be dangerous to women, the report said.

McIlroy also cited comments Hanson made on the Broken Fathers podcast, where she called paid leave for domestic violence victims “ridiculous” and suggested the issue distracted police from “real crime”. The article said Hanson posted the full comments to Brisbane radio station 4BC on social media while disputing criticism of her remarks.

A Newspoll published on Monday put One Nation’s primary vote at 30%, level with Labor and ahead of the Coalition on 19%, according to the article. Pollster Kos Samaras said roughly four in five current One Nation supporters had backed another party 18 months earlier, while describing them as “renting their vote to Hanson”.

The Guardian article linked One Nation’s appeal to economic pressures, citing data that Australia is heading for its weakest decade of living-standards growth since 1910, with GDP per person up 4% so far this decade. Albanese and incoming Labor national president Kate Ellis said their response would centre on policies intended to improve lives, including cost-of-living assistance on energy and childcare fees.