The Farrer byelection looks as though it will be a contest between the local independent, Michelle Milthorpe, and the One Nation candidate, David Farley.

Farrer’s last two MPs, Sussan Ley and Tim Fischer, led their parties. If voters elect Milthorpe or Farley, it will be another seat torn from Coalition heartland and handed to a minor party or independent.

Instead of competing with One Nation, the Liberal party under Angus Taylor is echoing One Nation’s divisive, hateful position on immigration and in Farrer is preferencing One Nation – a move that could put a One Nation MP in the House of Representatives for the first time.

Liberals in Farrer should ignore Taylor’s how-to-vote card and put One Nation last.

Taylor has said Milthorpe’s policies are “a threat” to Australia. If he had bothered to read them he would see her policy positions are thoughtful, considered and constructive – she is not trying to rile people up with anger and resentment.

One Nation, on the other hand, has for decades practised divisive politics designed to turn Australians against each other without any serious solutions to the grievances of the electorates they seek to represent. Whether their target is Asians, Aboriginal people or Muslims the formula is the same – identify a minority group and blame them for our current discontents.

This type of politics has been denounced by Liberal and Labor leaders for decades. Some have done so with more conviction than others but all have made the same point: we are a multicultural society, the harmony of which depends on mutual respect.

One Nation, and now Taylor, disagree. We have been told that Australia should not accept immigrants who come from non-democratic countries, and the tragic massacre at Bondi is called on to support this.

Of the two alleged terrorists, the son was born in Australia and the father had migrated from India – the world’s largest democracy. The hero Ahmed al-Ahmed, who disarmed one of the men, had come to Australia as an immigrant from Syria, ruled at the time by the tyrannical Assad family.

And while we are at Bondi, among the victims were Jewish Australians who had come to Australia from the thoroughly undemocratic Soviet Union.

The race, religion and nationality of an immigrant are not relevant – their own character and qualifications are. When I was prime minister, I was very clear that membership of the Australian family is a privilege. It should be afforded to those who support our values, respect our laws and want to work hard by integrating and contributing to an even better Australia.

Pauline Hanson seems most focused on Muslims nowadays and many people will see that Taylor’s latest immigration policy has the same intent.

If your concern is terrorism practised by Islamist extremists, then the policies of One Nation and its imitators are doing the terrorists’ work.

We have known for many years that extremist groups like Islamic State prey on young Muslims and tell them that they will never be accepted in Australia, that this is not their home, that they are hated by non-Muslims and their only real home is with the extremist group.

Those people who promote hatred of Muslims are simply confirming the recruiters’ propaganda. They are recruiting sergeants for IS and are making Australia less safe.

In these troubled times, with so much division and hatred being imported from overseas, Australians need to double down on our own values and, frankly, our own self-interest in maintaining a united, multicultural society.

Malcolm Turnbull is the former prime minister of Australia

© The Guardian