Barnaby Joyce actively considering defection to One Nation, say Coalition sources | Barnaby Joyce
Former Nationals leader Barnaby Joyce is actively considering defecting to One Nation, coalition figures show, days after founder Pauline Hanson said Liberal and National party members believed they had no future.
A One Nation spokesman declined to comment Media reports on Fridayor whether Hanson spoke to Joyce about his commitment to the party. The spokesman did not deny that previous discussions had taken place.
Sources close to Joyce and senior members of the party said the shock move was being evaluated this week.
Joyce did not respond to requests for comment.
This would be a blow to National Party leader David Littleproud and is likely to further destabilize the Coalition under opposition leader Sussan Ley.
Guardian Australia spoke to several National sources who said a move was likely; Others were surprised by the news Friday night.
Tensions between Joyce and Littleproud have increased in the months since the May 3 federal election. Joyce has been pushed to the back burner and is agitating for net zero carbon policies by 2050, including a private member’s bill to repeal the plan.
As the Coalition formally reviews its net zero policy, the NSW MP has waged a furious campaign against renewable energy projects in the background. Joyce took to the floor in the House of Representatives earlier this year to open the debate.
One Nation opposes net zero by 2050.
Joyce has also recently publicly backed his former rival and another former national leader, Michael McCormack, on his leadership bid, but both have denied they would pose a challenge.
The rumors come after a senior National official defected to One Nation last week. Steve Coxhead left his position as Tamworth branch president in Joyce’s New England constituency to join the minor party.
“I resigned because I believed the party no longer adequately represented regional and rural voters in NSW,” Coxhead told the media.
Another high-profile Liberal departure is on the way and has yet to be announced, Hanson told ABC radio this week, saying a former Liberal president is ready to leave.
“There are people who come to One Nation because they see that the Liberal-National party has no future,” he said.
However, he said he was not trying to attract MPs to his party.
“These people have to make up their own minds. They are elected members of parliament. They have to realize… are they really making a difference just by siding with the political party and raising their hand when they’re told to raise their hand?”
“If they see that One Nation offers a better alternative where they can represent the people, it’s up to them to decide whether they want to take on One Nation,” he said.
Speaking to Seven News on Friday, former Coalition leaders Andrew Hastie and Jacinta Nampijinpa said he wanted Price to leave, saying they were “in the wrong party”.
Support for One Nation has increased in recent polls; It reached 12% in the Resolve poll and 10% in Newspoll.
