PoliticsNow: Live news, analysis, from House of Representatives, Senate
PoliticsNow: Senior Nationals MPs have met and are expected to ask Barnaby Joyce to stand down as leader.
Malcolm Turnbull is standing by his Deputy Prime Minister on a day Barnaby Joyce has apologised to his family for his affair, while his Coalition partners push for him to go.
Labor concentrated solely on Mr Joyce in today’s question time but failed to make much headway despite the Deputy Prime Minister being under pressure from a growing number of government MPs who have described his position as “untenable”.
Here is how The Australian saw today’s politics in Canberra.
Dennis Shanahan, Geoff Chambers 6.24pm: Joyce faces internal strife
A senior delegation of Nationals MPs is preparing to approach Barnaby Joyce and ask him to step down as Deputy Prime Minister, amid growing concerns about Joyce’s ability to lead the party.
The Australian can reveal three senior Nationals MPs met late this afternoon, concerned about the sustained Labor and media attack impacting Mr Joyce’s performance.
Despite earlier claims that Malcolm Turnbull had not talked with Nationals backbenchers, The Australian understands he returned the call of an MP, which has angered some Nationals.
At a joint partyroom meeting today, Mr Joyce signalled he would dig-in amid mounting calls for him to step-down as Deputy Prime Minister but he is now understood to have lost the support of key allies who believe that he must stand-aside.
Senior government ministers had earlier today reached out to key Nationals MPs to discuss the best way forward, concerned that Mr Joyce was struggling to cope with his personal issues.
A Nationals MP told The Australian tonight that Mr Joyce’s leadership “can’t last”.
Former Deputy Prime Minister Warren Truss has told the ABC’s 7.30 that Joyce’s ability to lead the party has been diminished.
Mr Truss reportedly says the matter should be resolved as quickly as possible, but that Mr Joyce’s leadership is a matter for current MPs.
Remy Varga 5.20pm: ‘Nothing to see here’
The Nationals MP earlier thought to be interested in taking Barnaby Joyce’s role as party leader has denied putting his hand up, saying the embattled Mr Joyce has the unequivocally support of his party.
Member for Flynn Ken O’Dowd told Brisbane radio station 4CC that the scandal engulfing Mr Joyce was “embarrassing and a distraction” and if the leadership position was vacated “a lot of hands would go up”.
But Mr O’Dowd told The Australian that the comments were made in playful conversation with a radio host he has a long relationship with and that he will not be putting his hand up for a vacancy that does not exist.
“The interview was a lighthearted weekly chat with a radio host I’ve known for many years.” he said. “There is no vacancy and I will not be putting my name forward if there was.” Mr O’Dowd said.
The Queensland MP also said Mr Joyce had proved his leadership worth by standing up for regional Australia. “As leader of the National party, Mr Joyce has been instrumental in delivering significant achievements for regional and rural Australia.” he said.
3.25pm The Australian’s Troy Bramston has his say
Greg Brown 3.18pm: Tribute to English
Labor frontbencher Richard Marles asks Malcolm Turnbull if Barnaby Joyce should follow the lead of former New Zealand prime minister Bill English, who resigned from the National Party leadership today.
The PM uses it to pay tribute to the career of Mr English.
“I’m happy to take the opportunity to say that Bill English did an outstanding job as finance minister and prime minister,” Mr Turnbull says.
“The job they did in New Zealand is something that’s been an example to us and I just want to remind honourable members that a big part of their economic reform agenda was reducing business taxes.”
That is the end of QT.
Greg Brown3.15pm: More on roads spending
Labor MP Warren Snowdon asks Mr Joyce about a lack of spending on roads the cattle industry relies on in the Northern Territory.
Mr Joyce talks up the government projects in the Territory, totalling $1.1 billion.
“It’s great to be part of a government that actually had the initiative to do, to do the (Northern Australia Beef Roads Program),” Mr Joyce says.
3.12pm: Meanwhile in the other chamber
Greg Brown 3.03pm: Albo hammers Barnaby on roads
Anthony Albanese goes Mr Joyce again on infrastructure. He asks why, at a time when the national road toll is increasing, the government did not spend all its allocated funds on the heavy vehicle safety program.
“How many additional truck rest stops could have been built if this allocation had actually been invested?”
Mr Joyce says the government is trying to make roads safer through road upgrades.
“Whether it’s the Bruce Highway, the Pacific Highway, the Princes Highway, we’re doing our very best to make our roads safer,” he says.
Greg Brown 2.58pm: Joyce under fire over ‘$1bn cuts’
Labor frontbencher Anthony Albanese starts on Barnaby Joyce with an infrastructure question. Labor severely damaged Mr Joyce with this line of questioning yesterday.
“How does the minister explain this over-$1 billion cut in real terms just in Queensland’s infrastructure? How many jobs for Queenslanders would have been created had this investment actually occurred and not just been promised?”
Mr Joyce says Labor’s infrastructure spending went down in its final year in office in 2013.
“In equity and grant funding the Coalition has spent far more than the Labor Party has spent ever in any year,” he says.
Greg Brown 2.54pm: ‘No breach in standards’
Malcolm Turnbull says Labor has not established a breach in the ministerial standards in relation to the employment of Vikki Campion.
“The Deputy Prime Minister has set out the facts, members can form their own conclusion about that but I’ve provided the description of ‘partner’ and it is essentially a cohabitation, a marriage-like relationship, hence the term of marriage or de facto,” the PM says.
“So I think the circumstances are clear but the (Bill Shorten) has not been able to establish a breach of the ministerial standards or alleged one. If he wishes to do so he obviously has the opportunity here.”
Greg Brown 2.50pm: Refugees moved to US
Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton says 135 refugees have been moved from Manus Island and Nauru to the US.
“Including in the last 72 hours, some people who have been lifted from Manus and from Nauru,” Mr Dutton says.
Greg Brown 2.47pm: ‘What’s in a partner’
Labor MP Jenny Macklin asks Malcolm Turnbull to define the word “partner” after his office issued a statement saying Barnaby Joyceand Vikki Campion were not partners when she worked for Nationals ministers.
The PM says the term “partner” is not defined in the ministerial standards.
“But the standard definition, for example the Department of Human Services, says a partner is considered to be a partner if you and the person are together or usually live together and are married or in a registered relationship or a de facto relationship,” he says.
Greg Brown 2.37pm: ‘Ask the Nationals’, says Turnbull
Opposition legal affairs spokesman Mark Dreyfus asks if Malcolm Turnbull stands by statements from his office that ministerial standards were upheld with the staffing arrangements for Barnaby Joyce’s girlfriend Vikki Campion.
Malcolm Turnbull says his office had given statements that were not authorised by him. He puts responsibility back on the Nationals.
“The Nationals are responsible for decisions relating to staffing in the office of Nationals’ members,” the PM says.
“(Joyce) confirmed that the Prime Minister’s Office has an administrative role in informing the Department of Finance of changes.
“The facts of the relationship which you are referring to are of course known to the Deputy Prime Minister; it is his responsibility to address it and comply with the standards.”
Greg Brown 2.30pm: PM supports Barnaby Joyce
It doesn’t take long for the heat to come back on Barnaby Joyce. Bill Shorten asks if Malcolm Turnbull has been calling Nationals MPs to gauge support for the Deputy PM.
“Does the Prime Minister still retain confidence in his Deputy Prime Minister?”
The PM does not deny he was calling Nationals MPs about Joyce.
“The answer at the end of his question is yes,” he says.
(The Prime Minister’s Office denied Mr Turnbull had called Nationals MPs to gauge their support for Mr Joyce.)
Greg Brown 2.25pm: PM dismisses vote on ‘voice’
Bill Shorten asks Malcolm Turnbull if the government will reconsider a constitutionally recognised indigenous “voice” to the parliament.
The PM says the chance the voice would be carried in a constitutional vote was “zero”.
“If the honourable member wants to campaign at the next election for there to be a constitutionally entrenched national representative assembly, able to be voted for and occupied by only indigenous Australians, he is free to do so, but it is not one that this side of the house will respect,” Mr Turnbull says.
“We believe that all of our national institutions should be open to every single Australian, regardless of their background.”
Greg Brown 2.20pm: Turnbull reaffirms Rudd’s apology
Kevin and Therese Rudd are in the house for question time on the 10th anniversary of his apology to the Stolen Generation s.
Malcolm Turnbull opens QT by speaking about the apology and reaffirms it. He is warm to Mr Rudd, despite their recent acrimony.
“Years ago the gallery in this place was a sea of proud but heartbroken Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. Their eyes telling the story of the trauma they’ve lived with for their whole lives,” the PM says.
“That apology to the Stolen Generation will never be forgotten. It is not just one of those marks in the sand of history to be blown or washed away by time, but carved into the granite, into the bedrock of our history.”
Bill Shorten pays tribute to Mr Rudd’s “courage” and “leadership”.
The Opposition Leader tells the harrowing story of an Aboriginal baby, Paul, who suffered because he was taken from his mother.
“I do not know if that all had happened to me — if I’d been a parent or a child subject to these injustices, this shocking cruelty — I do not know if I could have found in myself to accept the apology,” Mr Shorten says.
“The survivors did 10 years ago. They showed us a generosity, kindness and humanity that we never showed them.”
Greg Brown 1.10pm: ‘No vacancy for leadership’
Nationals MP Darren Chester says he supports Barnaby Joyce’s leadership despite the Deputy Prime Minister coming under further pressure to resign.
Mr Chester, who Mr Joyce dumped from cabinet in December, said he would not join Flynn MP Ken O’Dowd in putting himself up as a potential replacement as Nationals leader of Mr Joyce stepped aside.
.@The_Nationals @DarrenChesterMP: There has been no discussion about changing party leadership following @Barnaby_Joyce's personal issues.
— Sky News Australia (@SkyNewsAust) February 13, 2018
MORE: https://t.co/JUh9HLyVig #SkyLiveNow pic.twitter.com/kSmyWn4iyw
“There is no vacancy for the leadership and Kenny, as much as he is a good mate of mine, he can speculates if he likes I won’t be speculating,” Mr Chester told Sky News.
“There is a lot of speculation and hype around this place on a daily basis but the Nationals have a proud record of delivery and we want to keep on doing that.”
Mr Chester said he had always been supportive of Mr Joyce, who replaced him as Infrastructure Minister in December.
“I’ve always supported Barnaby as leader. When he first ran he was actually elected unopposed and he has done a great job in the role,” he said.
“The point that I would make is, over the period of the last two years, he has a long list of achievements (which) is something he should be proud of and the Nationals should be proud of.
“He has a reputation for getting things done, when it comes to the inland road project, the Pacific Highway, the Bruce Highway, Barnaby has been a very strong leader in that regard.”
Geoff Chambers 12.20pm: Libs push for Joyce to go
Senior government ministers have reached out to key Nationals MPs in the wake of the Barnaby Joyce affair, with a growing push inside the Liberal Party for the Deputy Prime Minister to step down.
The Australian understands Darren Chester, who was dumped by Barnaby Joyce in last year’s ministerial reshuffle, met NSW Nationals MP Kevin Hogan last night.
Mr Joyce was last year accused by other Nationals of being “distracted” because of the affair with Vikki Campion. The decision to dump Mr Chester and Keith Pitt from the frontbench sparked internal hostility towards Mr Joyce.
#BREAKING: Sky News can reveal Prime Minister @TurnbullMalcolm has spoken with @The_Nationals to gauge the mood within party ranks. pic.twitter.com/wdcLJBjH57
— Sky News Australia (@SkyNewsAust) February 13, 2018
Rachel Baxendale 12.05pm: Joyce ‘doesn’t pass sniff test’
The Greens party room has passed a unanimous motion calling for Barnaby Joyce to resign as Deputy Prime Minister and leader of the National Party.
The Australian understands the decision was based on the belief that Mr Joyce’s statements about when his former staff member Vikki Campion became his partner “do not pass the sniff test”, and on the allegation made in The Daily Telegraph overnight that Malcolm Turnbull’s principal private secretary Sally Cray was told in 2015 by a former staff member of Mr Joyce’s political rival Tony Windsor that the Deputy Prime Minister had allegedly pinched a woman’s bottom at a rural women’s awards function four years earlier.
Mr Joyce said this morning that he “completely rejects” the allegations which have been “retailed in the past by embittered political opponents”.
Ben Packham 12pm: Lamb’s ‘crocodile tears’
Pauline Hanson has dismissed Susan Lamb’s emotional statement to parliament on her citizenship situation as “crocodile tears”.
Senator Hanson said Ms Lamb should have been referred to the High Court, but suggested Labor and the Coalition might have come to an agreement not to refer more citizenship cases to the High Court.
“She should go. No doubt about it, and the government should have referred her by this (time). A deals been done? I don’t know.
“But she is no different to anybody else. I don’t accept the crocodile tears.”
.@PaulineHansonOz: @OneNationAus will stand in every seat in Queensland, in as many lower house seats across Australia as possible and put forward Senate candidates in every state and territory.
— Sky News Australia (@SkyNewsAust) February 13, 2018
MORE: https://t.co/ZqKMvfxkvy #SkyLiveNow pic.twitter.com/SZYQotxTqa
Ms Hanson announced former One Nation Senator Malcolm Roberts, who was forced out of parliament over the citizenship crisis, would lead the party’s Queensland senate ticket at the next election.
The High Court ruled he was a UK citizen at the time of his nomination.
Ms Lamb told parliament last week that she was unable to get access to her parents’ marriage certificate to support her citizenship renouncement because her mother left her when she was six-years-old.
Rosie Lewis 11.35am: NXT set to be reduced to 2
The Nick Xenophon Team looks set to have its power reduced in the Senate after the High Court found its former senator Skye Kakoschke-Moore could not replace herself even though she had now renounced her British citizenship.
The full bench of the High Court unanimously found her seat should be filled by a special count, and that the NXT’s next-in-line candidate at the July 2016 election, Timothy Storer, should be included in the count.
The problem for the NXT is that Mr Storer has since quit the party and would serve as an independent, meaning the minor party’s bloc of three senators would be reduced to two.
Greg Brown 11.17am: This may be a cause for regret
Barnaby Joyce may be regretting this 2016 campaign ad against Tony Windsor which used the metaphor of a family breakdown to attack his competitor.
Greg Brown 10.44am: Marriage under pressure ‘for some time’
Barnaby Joyce said today his marriage had been under pressure “for some time” as he asked the media to show regard to his girlfriend Vikki Campion who had been the subject of “unwanted and deeply hurtful commentary”.
.@Barnaby_Joyce Statement: "I completely reject the allegation in the Daily Telegraph this morning. It is not the truth. No such thing happened. This and similar nonsense has been retailed in the past by embittered political opponents..." (1/8) pic.twitter.com/FDt6UFz7Nm
— 7 News Sydney (@7NewsSydney) February 12, 2018
In a written statement detailing the regret of the ending of his 24-year marriage, the Deputy Prime Minister publicly apologised to his wife Natalie and their four daughters, for the second time today.
“I deeply regret the failure of my 24-year marriage, the tremendous hurt caused to Natalie and our four daughters and the unwanted public intrusion into what is an intensely private matter for all of us,” Mr Joyce said in the statement.
“My marriage was under pressure for some time, Natalie and I tried to make it work again in April last year but it subsequently came to an end. I take responsibility for that failure.
“Vikki Campion has also been the subject of unwanted and deeply hurtful commentary at a difficult time, particularly as we are having a child together in mid-April.
“This has been a searing personal experience for Natalie, our daughters and for Vikki — criticise me if you wish but please have some regard for them.”
Mr Joyce detailed the employment history of Ms Campion and claimed he did not breach any protocols.
“In 2016 Vikki worked on the election campaign and in August came to work on my staff. A friendship subsequently developed and that became, over time, more.
“In April last year she went to work for a senior colleague, Mr Canavan.
“She was well qualified for the role, was an existing and obviously capable staff member and the change was within the existing Nationals staff arrangement.
“I did not discuss these matters with the Prime Minister or his office as Vikki was not my partner, so they were dealt with in the usual course of staff deployments within the Party.
When Mr Canavan stood down over the citizenship issue she went to work for another MP and subsequently left the Nationals staff following the most recent reshuffle.”
He rejected an allegation in the Daily Telegraph this morning that he harassed a woman while drunk at a function in 2015.
“No such thing happened,” Mr Joyce said.
“This and similar nonsense has been retailed in the past by embittered political opponents.
“Given the circumstances, I have consulted senior legal advisers and reserve the right to take action for what is serious defamation.”
Greg Brown 10.40am: O’Dowd ‘will consider running’
Nationals MP Ken O’Dowd says he will consider running for party leader if Barnaby Joyce stands aside.
The Gladstone Observer reported the member for Flynn could vie for the role of Deputy Prime Minister. The 67-year-old reportedly told local radio station 4CC the situation with Mr Joyce and his former staffer was “embarrassing and a distraction”.
Greg Brown 10.05am: Sorry anniversary underway
Commemorations are underway in Parliament House to pay tribute to the 10th anniversary of Kevin Rudd’s apology to the Stolen Generations.
The 10th Anniversary of the National Apology Parliamentary Breakfast in Canberra today. @congressmob #Apology @MrKRudd pic.twitter.com/Rv4p7CXgkI
— National Congress (@congressmob) February 12, 2018
Marking 10 years since the #Apology to the #StolenGenerations at Parliament - with @SenatorDodson @billshortenmp @Malarndirri19 @MrKRudd pic.twitter.com/HHkSmhhXbW
— Linda Burney MP (@LindaBurneyMP) February 12, 2018
Primrose Riordan 9.50am: Former NZ PM to quit
New Zealand opposition leader Bill English, whose party was defeated at the last election, will step down as leader and retire from his country’s parliament in two weeks time on February 27.
“Now is the right time for me to step aside from the leadership of the National Party and embark on new personal and professional challenges,” he said.
Mr English took over as National Party leader from former Prime Minister John Key in December 2016.
He said he wanted to step down now to give the new party leader enough time to prepare for the next election.
Just heard the news that Bill English has decided to stand down. Bill has made a huge contribution through his time in office and to politics generally. I admire those who serve NZ in this place, and Bill did for a long time, and he did it well. My best wishes @RtHonBEnglish
— Jacinda Ardern (@jacindaardern) February 12, 2018
Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern paid tribute to Mr English on social media.
“Just heard the news that Bill English has decided to stand down. Bill has made a huge contribution through his time in office and to politics generally. I admire those who serve NZ in this place, and Bill did for a long time, and he did it well,” she tweeted.
Greg Brown 9.40am: Cashless card set for rollout
Social Services Minister Dan Tehan says the government would pursue rolling out the cashless welfare card nationally if the trial showed strong results.
Mr Tehan said he would work to convince crossbenchers of the efficacy of the program after the Nick Xenophon Team passed a compromise to extend the trial last night.
NXT senators agreed to expand the trial to a third location in Western Australia’s Goldfields but blocked the government’s plans to run a trial in Bundaberg.
Mr Tehan said the crossbenchers want to make sure the government’s evaluations of the trial was reliable.
“I’ve said to them that I want to do more work with them about to make sure that we have got the metrics right because what we are seeing on the ground, and what we are hearing on the ground, is that this is making a real difference to peoples lives,” Mr Tehan told Sky News.
“They are spending nearly 50 per cent less on alcohol, nearly 50 per cent less on gambling, and that money is going into food, into clothing, into making sure that the rent is being paid.
“So we are seeing real progress but they just want to make sure we are getting the evaluation right and that is something I am happy to work with them.”
Greg Brown 8.55am: ‘Rumour peddled by my bitterest enemy’
Barnaby Joyce has spoken out about the scandal involving him and the government, apologising to his estranged wife and daughters while denying reports he harassed a woman while drunk at a function.
Mr Joyce said the story in the Daily Telegraph this morning was wrong and he would “reserve all my legal rights” on what action he would pursue. He also addressed staffing arrangements of his former staffer and now partner Vikki Campion but he refused to take questions.
“It’s not a case that I didn’t recollect it, it did not happen. This is a story that has been brought about by a person unnamed, at a venue unnamed, at a time unnamed, seven years ago, and has been peddled by the bitterest of political enemies to me,” Mr Joyce said outside parliament this morning.
UPDATE: @Barnaby_Joyce insists he hasn't breached the ministerial code of conduct over staffing arrangements. The Deputy Prime Minister has apologised to his wife and members of his electorate, and says there is no doubt that Vikki Campion is now his partner. pic.twitter.com/KSfJFDbezr
— Sky News Australia (@SkyNewsAust) February 12, 2018
“They’ve had it on social media for years. In the past, I didn’t believe it dignified a response. But today it’s in the paper and, as such, I reserve all my legal rights as to what action I should pursue.”
Mr Joyce said he was “very aware” of the ministerial code of conduct which prevents ministers from having their partners as staff.
“It is without a shadow of a doubt that Vikki Campion is my partner now. But when she worked in my office, she was not my partner,” he said.
“When she worked in Matt Canavan’s office, she was not my partner. And Damian Drum was not a minister. I think this is vitally important in how we differentiate between the public and the private.”
Mr Joyce apologised to his wife Natalie and his four daughters “for all the hurt caused”.
“To my girls, how deeply sorry I am for all the hurt that it has caused them. To Vikki Campion, how deeply sorry I am that she has been dragged into this,” he said.
“I would like to also say to my supporters and people in my electorate how deeply sorry I am that this personal issue, deeply personal issue, has gone into the public arena.”
Greg Brown 8.30am: ‘Joyce isn’t up to the job’
Opposition finance spokesman Jim Chalmers says Labor’s grilling of Barnaby Joyce in question time yesterday should raise concerns over whether the Deputy Prime Minister had let his work be impacted by the distractions surrounding his personal life.
Labor peppered Mr Joyce with tough questions on his infrastructure portfolio, which he took over in December, leaving the Nationals leader uncomfortable and exposed in his new portfolio.
“He’s not doing the first job that people have elected him to do as the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Infrastructure,” Mr Chalmers told the West Australian’s podcast The Whip.
“We asked him a question about Tasmania and he talked about Badgerys Creek Airport in Western Sydney; he talked about the Inland Rail along the east coast of the mainland. I think that’s just an indication that his mind is elsewhere and he’s not actually up to the job.
“I think an objective reading of his performance as minster has been that he’s not been a particularly good (minister), and I think question time showed that again today.”
Greg Brown 8.10am: Joyce position ‘untenable’
Opposition Treasury spokesman Chris Bowen says Barnaby Joyce’s leadership position has become “increasingly untenable” as he demanded a better explanation on the saga involving jobs offered to the Deputy Prime Minister’s girlfriend Vikki Campion.
#BREAKING - Barnaby Joyce has just arrived at Parliament House and told 7 News that he’ll make a statement today. pic.twitter.com/LR6Irhj6Zx
— Sunrise (@sunriseon7) February 12, 2018
Mr Bowen said Mr Joyce would need to “fully deny” allegations reported in the Daily Telegraph today that he pinched a woman on the bottom while drunk at a function. Mr Joyce will make a statement addressing the claims later today but his spokesman has labelled the allegations as “false and defamatory”.
“It is very clear that Barnaby Joyce and frankly Malcolm Turnbull need to make a full account, a full account of their knowledge and their actions in all these matters,” Mr Bowen told ABC radio.
“And particularly, Barnaby Joyce will need to fully deny the latest allegations because Barnaby Joyce’s position is frankly becoming increasingly untenable.”
Mr Bowen said the government’s story on Ms Campion’s employment after the affair had “unravelled”.
“The Prime Minister said yesterday he was unaware of the relationship yet today the media reporting is that he was told by Barnaby Joyce, I think in August, the relationship was over,” Mr Bowen said.
“Now, you can’t be unaware of a relationship and be told it’s over at the same time, one of those statements was incorrect.
“There are as number of areas where the government’s story has unravelled and we have been clear to make the delineation between private and public in this matter,.”
Greg Brown 7.50am: ‘It’s distracting’
Finance Minister Mathias Cormann has failed to endorse Barnaby Joyce as Deputy Prime Minister, saying his position was an “matter for the Nationals”.
Senator Cormann was asked on ABC radio this morning if Mr Joyce should stand down as Nationals leader.
“The leadership of the Nationals Party is a matter for the National Party and these are not matters for me,” Senator Cormann said.
He said the ongoing saga was a distraction for the government.
“It is distracting, people don’t want us to be talking about this stuff, I can only imagine how distressing this must be for all involved,” Senator Cormann said.
“Clearly it is a distraction for the government we want to be talking about our plans to secure more jobs and higher wages we don’t want to be talking about this.”
Senator Cormann said Mr Joyce’s girlfriend Vikki Campion was hired as a media adviser on merit.
“She was recruited on merit as someone who worked in the media to a media advisory role, she was not in a relationship when she was recruited into his office and the rest is a matter for Barnaby to explain,” he said.
Greg Brown 7.10am: Joyce to make statement
Cabinet minister Dan Tehan says Barnaby Joyce will today make a statement about the ongoing scandal involving an affair he had with a former staffer.
Mr Tehan said the Deputy Prime Minister would address the issue which has lead to growing concerns within the Nationals about his leadership.
.@DanTehanWannon: I understand @Barnaby_Joyce will make a statement today refuting allegations made against him overnight.
— Sky News Australia (@SkyNewsAust) February 12, 2018
MORE: https://t.co/TSh3xqVrDd pic.twitter.com/1JMLX6tvrS
“My understanding is today that Barnaby Joyce will make a statement, I think we should allow him to make that statement,” Mr Tehan told Sky News.
“He is going to refute, as I understand it, some of the allegations which have been made overnight.
“So I think it is only right and proper that we allow Barnaby to make his statement today.”
The Daily Telegraph reported this morning that Mr Turnbull’s principal private secretary Sally Cray was told in 2015 that Mr Joyce had pinched a woman’s bottom at a rural women’s awards function four years earlier. A spokesman for Mr Joyce said: “the allegations are false and defamatory”.
What’s making news:
Former Nationals leader John Anderson has called on Barnaby Joyce to take “direct responsibility” for resolving the political damage inflicted by his affair with former staffer Vikki Campion, as pressure mounts on the Deputy Prime Minister to resign.
Barnaby Joyce’s pregnant partner and former staffer Vikki Campion has been drawing a government pay packet over the past two months, with her employment formally expected to cease later this week.
The multi-millionaire businessman who gave Barnaby Joyce six months’ free rent in an Armidale townhouse says he was not seeking political favour but made the offer because the Deputy Prime Minister had “nowhere else to go”.
Bill Shorten has pledged to legislate to create an indigenous “advisory’’ voice to parliament ahead of putting the plan to a constitutional referendum if Labor wins office, declaring the “lived experience’’ of seeing how such a body operated would defeat scare campaigns against it.
Susan Lamb has been accused of “misleading” parliament after the Queensland Labor MP made an emotional speech detailing her difficult childhood in a bid to stop the Turnbull government from pursuing her dual-citizenship case.
Greens senator Nick McKim has been savaged by Labor and Liberal MPs on the parliamentary migration committee for failing to attend a single meeting — including with refugee groups, social workers and police — during a year-long inquiry into the integration of migrants.
Labor MP Peter Khalil has hit out at the Greens for attacking senator Jim Molan as a potential war criminal, claiming he too was the subject of a Greens doorknocking campaign that called him a war criminal during the 2016 federal election.
Dennis Shanahan writes that Barnaby Joyce is dangerously out on a limb and the bough is bending.
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