One Nation leader Pauline Hanson has accused Australia’s prime minister and treasurer of fuelling the threat of political violence, claiming their descriptions of her party as a danger to the country could encourage attacks on its supporters.
In two posts on X on Monday, Senator Hanson said she supported free speech and open political debate but objected to what she called the “normalising and encouraging” of possible incitements to violence.
She directed her criticism at Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and Treasurer Jim Chalmers, accusing them of portraying democratically elected opponents as “dangerous” and “a threat to our country”.
“Words have consequences,” Ms Hanson said, arguing that such language invited Australians to view One Nation as a threat rather than a legitimate political party.
“Anthony Albanese says we need to turn down the heat and violent rhetoric in our political discourse,” she wrote. “Meanwhile, he and his Treasurer are pouring petrol all over it.”
Ms Hanson said voters should be able to support One Nation without being told that their choice endangered Australia. She also accused Labor politicians of receiving a “free pass” to use language they would not tolerate from their opponents.
Her comments referred to the killing of former British politician Ann Widdecombe, which she cited as an example of the dangers of poisonous political rhetoric. Ms Widdecombe was found dead at her home in Devon in July after what police described as a targeted attack.
British counter-terrorism officers are investigating whether the killing had a political or terrorist motive. A 28-year-old man has since been charged with murder, although the investigation into his alleged motive remains ongoing.
One Nation support rises in latest poll
Senator Hanson’s intervention came as One Nation’s support reached 30 per cent in the latest Newspoll, putting it narrowly ahead of Labor on 29 per cent. The Coalition was on 19 per cent and the Greens on 13 per cent.
The poll was conducted before One Nation won the Secret Harbour by-election in Western Australia on Saturday, taking the party’s first lower-house seat in the state after defeating Labor in an electorate that had traditionally been considered safe for the party.
One Nation federal MP Barnaby Joyce said the result reflected voters’ frustration with what he described as a two-party “closed shop”.
Ms Hanson said the real threat facing Mr Albanese and Mr Chalmers was not violence but Australians rejecting their government “at the ballot box”.
“Jim Chalmers and Anthony Albanese need to take their own advice and turn the temperature down,” she said.
