Barnaby Joyce a serial plotter but you have to admire him

The voters in his electorate of New England, stuck with Barnaby Joyce despite the ups and downs of his personal life.. Picture: NCA NewsWire/Martin Ollman

For years I regarded Barnaby Joyce as the best retail politician in the country. He could sell ice to Eskimos or a heater to a resident of Marble Bar. He was neither slick nor smooth but he had a way of presenting himself as earnest and truthful. He looked and sounded plausible so his rise up through the ranks of the Nationals was hardly surprising. He wore the country man’s hat. The look was perfect because it was normal and natural for a man who was a farmer. His whole persona worked so well in his electorate that even a messy marriage break-up proved to be little more than the slightest of blips in his upward trajectory.

The voters in his electorate of New England, based on the city of Tamworth, stuck with him despite the ups and downs of his personal life. During his enforced stay on the backbench he never sulked. He continued to pop up on as many radio and television talk shows as would have him. He maintained relationships across his parliamentary colleagues and has always had the loyalty of Senator Matt Canavan, who in my view is one of the brightest people in the parliament. Canavan should play second fiddle to no one because he really is a very talented young politician.

The Nationals have been accused of putting too many people into parliament who wade at the shallow end of the pool because they never did learn how to swim. This view fails to recognise the contributions of the likes of Keith Pitt, Bridget McKenzie and Darren Chester, all of whom are worth powder and shot. I know it doesn’t count for anything any more but all of those named above are good people, too.

We are yet to discover how many promises Joyce had to make to secure a majority among his party. If he sacks or demotes those who did not support him on a grand scale the payback might have serious consequences, none of which would be good. He is more likely to give himself a real chance of longevity in the top job if he keeps his vengeance to a minimum. He is not yet in a position with enough strength and clout to wipe all of his opponents off the ministerial list so caution would be advisable at this stage of his resurrected leadership,

Anyone who can pull off an astonishing comeback should be worthy of admiration and Joyce is no different. We should all acknowledge that his comeback has been remarkable. He is the perfect political animal. At front of house he is personable, charming and relentlessly seeks to convert more to his cause. Behind the curtain he is a serial plotter who always has some new plan to put in place or some colleague he wants to displace. If you are on the wrong side of him you have to be wary because you know that he does not give up easily. He is like a dog with a bone. He won’t stop until it is fully digested.

He is as tough as an old boot and no matter how begrudgingly I might feel like saying it, he is one of the best politicians Australia has produced. For the record the best is Peter Dutton who has hung on to a seat with a 2 per cent margin when colleagues all around him in southern Queensland have lost more seats than I can remember. To do that you need courage and an unfailing spirit. Barnaby has that in spades.