Conservatives zero in on migration after climate coup
Having won the battle to soften the Liberals’ climate commitments, the party’s right wing plans to use its influence in an equally fierce fight over immigration policy.
The Liberals and the National Party are preparing for a meeting on Sunday to approve a joint plan to abandon Australia’s net zero target by 2050, with moderates warning the move would damage the party’s popularity in inner-city areas.
The policy change is a major victory for the right wing, strengthened by two successive elections in which moderate MPs were wiped out and further emboldened by Opposition Leader Sussan Ley’s capitulation on net zero.
One conservative suggested the next debate on immigration would be a “rinse and repeat” of the climate fight and that there were no immediate plans to challenge Ms Ley as leader because the conservatives had won their policy demands.
Desperate moderate Liberals fear the National Party will move to the forefront of the coalition’s immigration policy, reflecting the tenor of climate talks.
But Nationals sources denied these claims and insisted they would achieve their goals through the official party room process.
The immigration debate is more nuanced in the Nationals’ party room because its regional base relies on immigrants to fill essential roles, such as agricultural workers.
One option being discussed by MPs is to tie Australia’s immigration rate to the number of homes available as a way of ensuring new arrivals don’t find it harder to find somewhere to live.
Ms Ley acknowledged immigration would be the next big policy issue for the Liberals and said the party would do so respectfully.
“The problems we face are not the fault of any immigrant or immigrant community. These are failures in infrastructure,” he said.
Pollster and former Liberal staffer Tony Barry has warned that immigration poses political risks for both Labor and the coalition as it has the potential to mobilize soft voters.
“Both sides will need to communicate their positions clearly,” he told AAP.
“Often in politics it’s not just what you say, but how you say it.
“If the coalition is framed by Labor as parochial and anti-immigrant, that will be a huge problem.”
Opposition immigration spokesman Paul Scarr has a more moderate Liberal view on the issue and has strong ties to multicultural communities.
After many derogatory comments made by colleagues towards immigrants, he is wary of not alienating immigrants further from the party.
Western Australia-based Liberal leadership candidate Andrew Hastie resigned as opposition home affairs spokesman in March over disagreement over immigration policy.
He has been outspoken on the issue, calling for a reduction in immigration intake and controversially suggesting that Australians feel like “strangers in our own home”.
Ms Ley sacked former leader Jacinta Nampijinpa Price from the veterans affairs portfolio after the Northern Territory senator refused to apologize for suggesting Labor was prioritizing Indian immigrants to win votes.
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