Pauline Hanson Throws Political Grenade: Calls for Immediate Exit from the United Nations, Billions in Funding Cuts, Ban on UN Operations in Australia, and Radical Overhaul of Foreign Policy
In a fiery address delivered from her Queensland base and livestreamed nationwide on February 6, 2026, One Nation leader Pauline Hanson launched what many are calling the most radical foreign policy proposal in modern Australian political history. Standing in front of a large Australian flag and flanked by supporters holding “Sovereignty First” banners, Hanson declared that Australia must “withdraw immediately” from the United Nations, describing the organization as a “global corrupt syndicate” that has eroded national sovereignty, wasted billions of taxpayer dollars, and imposed policies that run counter to Australian values and interests.
Hanson did not mince words. “The United Nations is no longer a forum for peace and cooperation—it is a bloated, unelected bureaucracy that lectures free nations while protecting dictators and terrorists. Australia sends them billions every year, yet we get nothing in return but more rules, more interference, and more woke ideology forced down our throats. Enough is enough. It’s time to get out—now.”
Her plan is sweeping and uncompromising. She proposes:
Immediate withdrawal from the UN and all affiliated bodies, including UNESCO, WHO, and the Human Rights Council. Immediate cessation of all UN-related funding, which she claims costs Australian taxpayers more than $4 billion annually when direct contributions, peacekeeping operations, and indirect aid are included. A complete ban on UN agencies, offices, and personnel operating on Australian soil.
Abolition of the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) in its current form, to be replaced by a new “National Sovereignty Protection Force” tasked solely with advancing Australian interests, securing borders, negotiating bilateral trade deals, and protecting citizens abroad—without “globalist agendas.” A full audit and clawback of all foreign aid spending over the past decade, with redirected funds going toward domestic priorities such as cost-of-living relief, aged care, and defence.
Hanson framed the proposal as a matter of survival. “We are a proud, independent nation of free people—not a colony of New York bureaucrats or Geneva ideologues. The UN has become a tool for elites to control sovereign countries through climate mandates, migration compacts, and human rights resolutions that punish Western democracies while ignoring real tyranny. We will not be complicit any longer.”
The reaction was instantaneous and ferocious. Within minutes, #AusExitUN and #HansonRevolution were trending nationwide. Social media split sharply: supporters—many from regional Australia, small business owners, veterans, and conservative voters—celebrated Hanson as the only politician willing to “say what we’re all thinking.” One widely shared post read: “Finally someone with guts. The UN has never helped a single Aussie family pay their power bill.”
Critics, however, were scathing. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese called the proposal “dangerous fantasy” and “reckless isolationism.” Foreign Minister Penny Wong described it as “an attack on decades of bipartisan foreign policy that has kept Australia safe and prosperous.” The Greens accused Hanson of “conspiracy theorising,” while the Liberal Party leadership distanced itself, with Opposition Leader Peter Dutton saying only that “any serious discussion of UN reform must be measured and evidence-based.”
Business groups voiced alarm. The Business Council of Australia warned that withdrawal could trigger retaliatory trade barriers, loss of access to UN-backed development programs, and reputational damage that would harm exports. Universities and NGOs dependent on UN partnerships expressed fear of funding cuts and loss of international credibility.
Yet Hanson’s base is energized. One Nation’s polling numbers jumped 3 points in instant post-speech surveys, with strong gains in Queensland, Western Australia, and rural New South Wales. At public rallies called overnight in Brisbane, Townsville, and Perth, thousands chanted “Sovereignty First!” and waved Australian flags alongside placards reading “UN Out – Australia In.”
The proposal has also reignited debate about Australia’s place in the world. Supporters argue that the UN has become ineffective and politicised—pointing to veto power abuses by Russia and China, repeated failures to prevent genocide, and what they call “anti-Western bias” in resolutions. Critics counter that leaving the UN would isolate Australia diplomatically, weaken its voice on climate, trade, and security, and hand influence to authoritarian regimes that remain members.
Hanson anticipated the backlash. In her speech she declared: “They will call us isolationist. They will call us extreme. But history will call us patriots. Every great nation that ever stood tall did so by putting its own people first—not some faceless global bureaucracy.”
As the petition for a referendum on UN membership gains signatures online and street protests grow, Canberra faces its most serious sovereignty debate in decades. Whether Hanson’s scorched-earth plan ever becomes policy is doubtful—One Nation holds only a handful of Senate seats—but she has undeniably shifted the Overton window. For millions of Australians disillusioned with cost-of-living pressures, border security concerns, and perceived elite disconnect, her message resonates: why should we keep paying billions to an organisation that seems to serve everyone except us?
The grenade has been thrown. The explosion is only beginning.