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Deputy opposition leader Sussan Ley has dismissed the argument that if the Coalition were to cut net overseas migration by 25 per cent it would be a downgrade on growth.

Yesterday, shadow treasurer Angus Taylor delivered his post budget reply speech to the National Press Club. When fielding questions from journalists, Taylor set the Coalition’s target to cut net overseas migration by 25 per cent over a term of government, diverging from the one announced by Opposition Leader Peter Dutton.

In Dutton’s budget reply speech last Thursday, the opposition leader pledged to reduce permanent migration by 25 per cent from 185,000 to 140,000 for the first two years, followed by a target of 150,000 then 160,000 over the next two years.

But in an interview on 2GB last Friday, the opposition leader also pledged to cut net overseas migration – the total number after allowing for departures and arrivals across all residency visas – to 160,000, which would be a 40 per cent reduction on the government target.

Speaking on Sky, Ley said the Coalition will target net overseas migration that will be a quarter lower than Labor’s planned cuts to migration, but would not concede if the Coalition downgraded migration that significantly there would be a downgrade on growth.

“Growth [that] comes just off the back of migration is not the way this economy should be run. I didn’t hear the Treasurer [Jim Chalmers] talk productivity at all,” Ley said.

Asked again by Sky’s Tom Connell that if the Coalition were to cut migration by 25 per cent it would have to be a downgrade, Ley pushed back.

“It’s not binary, it’s not binary, it’s not binary this versus that. We should be focusing on productivity which principally means energy policy, industrial relations policy or policy for manufacturing that isn’t handouts that the government announced in its budget,” she said.

“Critics to simply point to migration is overlooking the importance of number one, homes for Australians but number two, a proper plan that tackles inflation and reduces rising prices.”