Barnaby Joyce has finally quit the National Party, leaving behind some shaking heads and disappointed voters south of the border.
The Member for New England sent this statement to the media late last week:
After 30 years with the National Party, and with a very heavy heart for what is a momentous decision, I am resigning from the Party.
As I have stated, the relationship with the elected Leadership of The Nationals in the House of Representatives has become dysfunctional and discordant over a long period of time and behoves neither to continue on in this form.
I have been asked numerous times both directly and indirectly to leave, so I suppose I shall now do that. Since initially announcing this five weeks ago, there has been no communication with either the Leader or Deputy Leader of The Nationals apart from a 90 second phone conversation.
Oddly enough, none of this is really important in the scheme of things. What is vastly more important is how do we stop the destruction of our rural land with intermittent power precincts? How do we help the poor with the cost of living that is beyond their capacity to pay for? How do we prepare for a totalitarian regime such as Communist China that is becoming increasingly provocative towards Australia every day? How do we get doctors into regional towns and hospitals? How do we build the infrastructure the builds the strength in the nation’s balance sheet?
For me being a discordant voice in the furthest corner of the back bench of the Coalition in Opposition is not giving me the capacity to give my best endeavours to have an effect on this.
I acknowledge that this will create great hurt for so many, and I am so deeply sorry for that, but I hope over time people realise that it wasn’t as dramatic as first thought, the world moves on and, after a period of reticence, if we were friends before we will become friends again.
National Party leader David Littleproud, in a separate interview with the media before the official divorce, expressed his belief that Mr Joyce had a responsibility to the people of New England.
“It breaks the contract he made with the people of New England at the 2025 Federal election”, Mr Littleproud said, calling the decision “disappointing”. Mr Littleproud also reminded voters that the National Party stuck with Mr Joyce during “his darkest moments”, of which there were a few.
“The Nationals will continue to fight for regional Australia,” Mr Littleproud said, pointing to abandoning Net Zero.
How do residents of Tenterfield feel about Mr Joyce’s change in party? Join the conversation and email voneiff.journo@gmail.com
