One Nation's new Victorian leader, Warren Pickering, has promoted a conspiracy theory claiming that the "15-minute city" urban planning model is part of a sinister effort to control how Australians live and move.
Pickering, who was announced in August 2026 as One Nation's candidate for the seat of Pakenham in the November state election, made these claims while serving as the party's Victorian state president. In a Facebook post shared in September 2024, he warned Victorians that the "noose is tightening" around every aspect of their lives under a plot led by "unelected globalist bureaucrats" to restrict city movement.
He argued that the construction of large public transport hubs and high-rise apartment buildings in Melbourne's "sleepy suburbs" were part of a government conspiracy to "control all aspects of your life." Pickering stated, "Under the pretence of 'sustainability,' the powers that be would love to see our populations consolidated into manageable 15-minute zones."
He also shared screenshots of media reports about the livability of cities with shorter commutes, presenting them as evidence of a "concerted effort" by the United Nations and World Economic Forum to "dictate" social and economic policy. "The noose is tightening in all aspects of our lives to divide our collective attention efforts," he added.
This conspiracy theory gained traction during and after the COVID-19 pandemic, recasting the 15-minute city concept as a government plan to restrict people's movements, monitor residents, and eventually prevent people from leaving designated neighborhoods without permission. The claims intensified after plans for 15-minute neighborhoods in Oxford, England, were conflated with a separate traffic-management scheme involving cameras and road restrictions.
QUT Digital Media Research Centre Professor Axel Bruns commented that it was "not surprising" the "15-minute city" conspiracy had emerged in Victoria given the public's reaction to the state's pandemic lockdowns.
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