Former prime minister Tony Abbott has been criticised by fed-up Aussies after calling for an immigration policy based on “values” in a new podcast.
Mr Abbott, who is now President of the embattled Liberal Party, made the comments in his Australia’s Future podcast, which is produced by conservative think tank the Institute of Public Affairs (IPA).
In a clip shared by the IPA on social media on Thursday, Mr Abbott echoed statements made by Liberal leader Angus Taylor earlier this year, and said “I don’t believe we should have an immigration policy that discriminates on the basis of race or religion”.
“But we certainly should have one that is discriminatory on the basis of values,” Mr Abbott said.
“Now, if you believe in a global caliphate, if you believe in Sharia law, if you believe in ‘death to the infidel’, if you believe in a privileged place for one religion over other religions, if you believe in a privileged place for one political party over other political parties, this is not the country for you.
“Because, well, frankly, a healthy pluralism, an equality of rights, freedom of expression, of conscience, of religion, have always characterised Australia.”
Liberal Party (to 1000,000 Muslims and Hindus): “Do you promise to be good Aussies?”
Applicants: “Yes, yes of course we do!”
Immigration officer: “Righto, get in here!”
The Liberals’ most conservative take on immigration. https://t.co/C4HFHufxxl— Stephen Chavura (@ChavuraStephen) August 20, 2026
This rhetoric is dangerous and is destroying our nation.
Saying anyone can be Australian insofar as they have the right “values” undermines our national identity.
The people make up a nation, not the values they hold.
I don’t care what values these foreigners have. Australia… https://t.co/z1eKbzvWLH— Ausdom (@Ausdom888) August 21, 2026
The video sparked backlash on X, where some Australians asked what prevented immigrants from lying about their values to get visas, and others called the policy an attack on Australian identity.
“Liberal Party (to 1000,000 Muslims and Hindus): ‘Do you promise to be good Aussies?’ Applicants: ‘Yes, yes of course we do!’ Immigration officer: ‘Righto, get in here!’ The Liberals’ most conservative take on immigration,” wrote academic Dr Stephen Chavura.
“This rhetoric is dangerous and is destroying our nation. Saying anyone can be Australian insofar as they have the right ‘values’ undermines our national identity,” wrote another Aussie.
“The people make up a nation, not the values they hold. I don’t care what values these foreigners have. Australia is for Australians!”
“Such a ridiculous take, religions literally encode values, so discriminating on values has massive overlap with discriminating against other religions,” said a third.
Another said: “This is milquetoast and boring from Tony. It’s 2026, the Great Replacement of Whites throughout the West is happening apace, and we have no time to lose. Furthermore, does he really think prospective migrants will be honest when given some sort of stupid values test?”
Mr Abbott came under criticism earlier this year after saying he supported the uniparty’s “hate speech” legislation, even though it is stricter than previous laws he once vowed to scrap before backing down due to pressure from the Jewish community.
“There’s nothing wrong with the laws as they stand, they just need to be enforced equally, as opposed to partially,” he said.
Header image: Tony Abbott on the podcast (IPA).
