As the opposition prepares to release details of its migration policy as soon as this week (it will recommend a reduction in Australia’s immigration intake) 53 per cent of Australians say current migration levels are too high, 4 per cent of people say they are too low, 27 per cent of people say they are about right and 18 per cent are undecided.
Labor and Anthony Albanese are riding high, while One Nation and Pauline Hanson continue to be a thorn in the side for Sussan Ley’s Coalition.Credit: Nathan Perri
The final Resolve survey for 2025 also found more people say they are more likely to vote for One Nation if former Nationals leader Barnaby Joyce joins Pauline Hanson’s party, 29 per cent, than those who say they are less likely, 19 per cent, if he defects.
Among Coalition and One Nation voters, support for a Joyce-led One Nation is even more pronounced: 39 per cent and 49 per cent of voters, respectively, are more likely to vote for Hanson’s party if Joyce joins and becomes leader. Just 11 per cent and 8 per cent are less likely to vote for One Nation.
The poll of 1800 respondents was conducted from December 2 to 7. It has a margin of error of plus or minus 2.3 per cent.
The dip in support for the Sussan Ley-led opposition comes after another difficult month in which the Coalition finally settled its position on net zero emissions by 2050 after months of infighting, resignations and public disquiet over the policy. It could further weaken Ley’s hold on the leadership. Ley has flagged several policy announcements in the new year as she tries to reset her faltering leadership over summer.
Albanese’s lead over Ley as preferred prime minister rose in the last month: 41 per cent of voters nominate the incumbent, up from 39 per cent last month, and 26 per cent nominate Ley, up from 25 per cent last month.
The proportion of voters who rated the prime minister’s performance as either good or very good rose by four percentage points to 48 per cent in the past month, while 42 per cent of voters said it was poor or very poor, down 2 per cent. Albanese’s net performance rating is back in positive territory at plus six percentage points.
Despite the hit to the Coalition’s primary vote, Ley’s personal performance rating improved significantly, rising from 34 per cent to 39 per cent good or very good in the last month, while her poor or very poor rating fell from 41 per cent to 37 per cent. Ley’s net rating rose from minus seven percentage points last month, the lowest it had ever been, to plus three.
When voters were asked to nominate their highest policy priority, “keeping the cost of living low” was the No.1 issue selected by 42 per cent of people surveyed – streets ahead of any other single issue, as it has been all year. That figure includes 9 per cent of people who specified house prices and rents.
The next highest issues are health and aged care (10 per cent), crime and anti-social behaviour (9 per cent), national security and separately climate change (6 per cent each) and immigration (5 per cent).
Labor enjoys solid leads over the Coalition across 15 of 18 policy areas, including health, education, climate, transport and, most crucially, economic management.
The government holds a net lead of plus three percentage points over the Coalition as better economic manager, a stunning turnaround from January 2025, when Labor trailed the Coalition as better economic managers by minus 19 percentage points. But Labor trailed the Coalition by six percentage points when voters were asked who was best placed to manage the nation’s finances.
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