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AAP
AAP
Politics
Zac de Silva

'Paddock of despair': MP blasts One Nation defectors

Two ex-Liberals have defected to One Nation as the party grows its ranks amid a surge in support. (Bianca De Marchi/AAP PHOTOS)

Two former Liberals have been accused of fleeing to the "orange paddock of despair" after defecting to Pauline Hanson's One Nation.

The right-wing party has grown its ranks with the addition of former Liberal senator Hollie Hughes and the party's former vice president Teena McQueen.

Senator Hanson announced the pair had jumped ship during an event at Ms Hughes' pub in regional NSW just over a week after the minor party's breakthrough win in the Farrer by-election.

Hollie Hughes
Former Liberal senator Hollie Hughes has defected to Pauline Hanson's One Nation party. (Mick Tsikas/AAP PHOTOS)

Opposition Leader Angus Taylor shrugged off the news, but fellow Liberal Tim Wilson blasted the defections.

"If somebody wants to follow others into the orange paddock of despair, that is their choice," he told reporters in Sydney.

"They're not the ones looking to the horizon with optimism and confidence and the spirit of what we can build in this country."

Ms Hughes, who resigned from the Liberal Party live on air after being bumped to an unwinnable spot on the senate ticket, said she hadn't decided whether she would run for parliament again under the One Nation banner.

"I'm not ruling anything in and I'm not ruling anything out," she told Sky News.

Shadow treasurer Tim Wilson
Tim Wilson blasted his former Liberal colleagues for defecting to "the orange paddock of despair". (Mick Tsikas/AAP PHOTOS)

Ms Hughes owns a pub in Rydal, near Lithgow in the Blue Mountains, and she said she was enjoying her new career in hospitality.

She suggested more Liberal rank-and-file members could jump ship to Senator Hanson's party in the coming months.

Mr Taylor refused to be drawn when asked about the ex-Liberal duo's moves.

"That's their choice," he said before pivoting to an attack on Labor's tax policy.

Pauline Hanson and Barnaby Joyce
Barnaby Joyce says One Nation could pick up seats in western Sydney at the next election. (Lukas Coch/AAP PHOTOS)

One Nation has been growing its ranks since former Nationals leader Barnaby Joyce defected to the right-wing party in December.

It had its first lower-house victory earlier in May when it won the seat of Farrer, which had been held by the coalition since its creation in 1949.

The clear win prompted Mr Joyce to declare One Nation could pick up seats in areas such as western Sydney when Australians next go to the polls in 2028.

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