"Never, ever": Tim Wilson retracts comments about a potential alliance with the right-wing party One Nation.

The shadow treasurer, Tim Wilson, has stated he would "never, ever, ever" support a coalition government with One Nation, retracting previous comments that suggested such an arrangement was possible. Urging the Liberals to "get on with" defining their platform, Wilson joined other senior party figures in rejecting any partnership with the right-wing populist party. Following One Nation's strong performance in the Farrer by-election, where it easily won a seat previously held by the Coalition for 77 years and reduced the Liberals' primary vote to 12%, attention has focused on how the Angus Taylor-led party will navigate challenges from both its right and left. On Sunday, Wilson raised the possibility of forming a government with One Nation, but on Monday, he and other senior Liberal figures rejected the idea, despite the conservative vote in Australia being fragmented and One Nation consistently outperforming the Coalition, posing an existential threat to its survival. "Of course, we traditionally form a coalition with the National party, but it's up to the Australian people to decide who they want to vote for," Wilson, a Liberal moderate who regained a teal-held seat in the 2025 election, told the ABC's Insiders program when asked on Sunday about potentially working with One Nation. "It all comes down to what Australians want." However, when questioned about those comments on Monday, Wilson dismissed the idea of a right-wing alliance. "I have never, ever, ever, and never, ever, ever will make such a statement in favor of such an alignment," he said. "The reality is, the leader of that party [Pauline Hanson] has already declared that she won't form a coalition with us, and I have no interest in forming a coalition with them." The shadow foreign affairs minister, Ted O'Brien, also dismissed the idea, saying: "We have no plans for going into a coalition with One Nation." Barnaby Joyce, the former Nationals MP who switched to One Nation, said his party would offer confidence in parliament to the Coalition if such a situation arose, but rejected a formal alliance. "We'll offer supply and confidence on policy outcomes... and that is not a coalition. We don't want your ministries, keep your ministries and your salaries," Joyce told Channel Nine, saying his colleagues wouldn't want to be "constricted by cabinet solidarity." Wilson accused One Nation of "hubris" in its leaders' comments about targeting seats in western Sydney and major cities, but conceded that many voters wanted change and were dissatisfied with the political status quo, while acknowledging that the Coalition needed to work harder to retain voters' support. "People are faced with choices about how they bring about change, and they're sending a message very clearly to the government," Wilson said. "There's a lot of work to do, and no one's pretending otherwise, and that's why we're going to put forward a bold, confident vision for the future of the country, backed up with policy to support entrepreneurs, small businesses, families, and communities. And we have to get on with that." While One Nation's rise has largely harmed the Coalition so far, the Labor government is aware of the anti-establishment and anti-status quo messages emanating from Hanson's growing popularity. Anthony Albanese has been reluctant to strongly criticize One Nation voters, instead focusing his critiques on Hanson's lack of tangible results despite her long career in politics. "Quite clearly, there are a lot of people under financial pressure who feel like the system isn't working for them," the prime minister told ABC Radio National. "And that's a message for all political parties in the system. "I respect people's right to vote however they determine. But One Nation, of course, is not a party of government. They are a political party led by someone who's promoted grievance rather than solutions."