{"id":534413,"date":"2026-03-12T00:46:10","date_gmt":"2026-03-12T00:46:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/534413\/"},"modified":"2026-03-12T00:46:10","modified_gmt":"2026-03-12T00:46:10","slug":"hyper-australia-nationals-leader-targets-one-nation-news","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/534413\/","title":{"rendered":"‘Hyper-Australia’: Nationals leader targets One Nation – News"},"content":{"rendered":"

Nationals leader Matt Canavan has vowed to take the fight to Pauline Hanson\u2019s ascendant One Nation with a \u201chyper-Australia\u201d agenda of barbecues, larrikinism and fossil fuels.<\/p>\n

The Queensland senator has taken over the regional party\u2019s top job after former leader David Littleproud\u2019s snap resignation on Tuesday.<\/a><\/p>\n

Darren Chester, an MP from regional Victoria, was elected deputy leader and Victorian senator Bridget McKenzie remained Senate leader.<\/p>\n

\"\"Queensland senator Matt Canavan been chosen for his party\u2019s top job. Picture: Instagram<\/p>\n

Senator Canavan was a key player in the coalition\u2019s decision to dump its net-zero emissions by 2050 target and is a major supporter of coal production, prioritising driving down energy prices over climate action.<\/p>\n

In his first media conference as leader, the conservative senator outlined a nationalistic approach to policy.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe need to go hyper-Australia for our country,\u201d he told reporters in the Nationals party room in Canberra.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe need more Australian babies. We need more Australian humour, more Australian jokes. We need more Australian barbecues, sometimes often fuelled by fossil fuels. We need more Australian everything.\u201d<\/p>\n

Asked about the difference between the Nationals under his leadership and One Nation, Canavan accused Hanson of peddling divisive politics and said her party was not a \u201cgrassroots\u201d organisation like his.<\/p>\n

\u201cI struggle to point to a single dam, single road, single hospital that Pauline has delivered in Australia,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Former Nationals leader Barnaby Joyce, who defected to One Nation in late 2025, disputed Canavan\u2019s claims but said he relished the political debate.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s like now running on for a serious game of football. I\u2019m really looking forward to it,\u201d he told reporters in Canberra.<\/p>\n

Asked about Canavan\u2019s argument about infrastructure, Joyce said the situation was different now because he was One Nation\u2019s first lower house MP and so could advocate effectively for his local community.<\/p>\n

Canavan will face a baptism by fire, with the Farrer by-election \u2013 sparked by the resignation of former Liberal leader Sussan Ley after she was knifed by Angus Taylor \u2013 scheduled for May 9.<\/p>\n

A popular independent is again contesting the once-safe Liberal seat after whittling down Ley\u2019s margin at the 2025 election.<\/p>\n

It is the first test for One Nation to see if it can convert popular polling into more seats in parliament.<\/p>\n

Both nascent coalition leaders are under pressure to win the seat and shore up voters who are leaving major parties in favour of independents and minor parties.<\/p>\n

Regional Queensland and NSW are considered particularly at risk of flipping to One Nation, threatening a number of electorates held by the Nationals.<\/a><\/p>\n

Canavan slapped down Hanson\u2019s controversial suggestion there were no good Muslims.<\/p>\n

\u201cI was very critical of Pauline\u2019s comments, dividing Australians into groups \u2026 I totally reject that,\u201d Canavan said.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe are all Australians, what unites us as a country is more than what divides us.<\/p>\n

\u201cI worry about where Pauline would take this country, to an area of more division.\u201d<\/p>\n

Opposition Leader Angus Taylor congratulated the Nationals leader and his team on their election, praising their understanding of regional and rural Australia.<\/p>\n

\u201cTogether with Matt and Darren, we will keep fighting every day for the country we believe in, because Australia is worth fighting for,\u201d he said in a statement.<\/p>\n

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese took a swing at the coalition in Question Time, accusing them of focusing on themselves at a time of global crisis.<\/p>\n

\u201cWith Australians feeling the impact of the war in the Middle East, the Nationals have elbowed their way to centre stage,\u201d he told parliament.<\/p>\n

\u201cSame old Liberals, same old Nats, same old One Nation, just three right-wing parties not standing up for Australia.\u201d<\/p>\n

-with AAP<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Nationals leader Matt Canavan has vowed to take the fight to Pauline Hanson\u2019s ascendant One Nation with a…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":534414,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[64,63,44],"class_list":["post-534413","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-australia","tag-au","tag-australia","tag-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/534413","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=534413"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/534413\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/534414"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=534413"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=534413"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=534413"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}