Barnaby Joyce’s pending defection to One Nation from Coalition celebrated by Liberal moderates

He said he spoke to Hanson and said that “one nation doesn’t bark like the rest” on climate policy. Joyce refused to say whether he had spoken to other National MPs about switching to a minor party.

Falinski said Joyce was hurting the Liberals. “His constant undermining of net zero… and some of his appearances in the media convinced a lot of people not to vote for the Liberals,” Falinski said.

“[Joyce] “It will appeal to some of the Australian electorate, but not the part of the electorate we need to win back.”

Joyce was leader of the Nationals when the Coalition under former Prime Minister Scott Morrison committed to a policy of achieving net zero emissions by 2050 as part of Australia’s commitment to the Paris Agreement on climate change.

But since the Coalition’s crushing election loss in May, Joyce has campaigned against climate action and renewable energy.

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Former Reid MP Fiona Martin, a member of the Liberals’ dwindling moderate faction who lost her seat to Labor’s Sally Sitou in 2022, said it was “madness to fight against net zero”.

“There are so many problems with Labor’s transition plan for them [the Coalition] “To focus on it without taking away people’s desire for it to work,” he said.

Former Bennelong MP John Alexander, who is retiring in 2022 and whose Bennelong seat was later lost to Labour’s Jerome Laxale, said the Liberals needed a comprehensive policy response to climate change and not just “chasing the headline ‘We’re out of Paris'”.

“If you’re going to abandon the current net zero policy by 2050, it needs to be supported by third-party experts, don’t do it just because it’s ‘left ideology’,” he said.

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He said the issue was thrust upon him when this imprint on 2GB published the story on Friday afternoon, forcing him to “rip off the Band-Aid.”

“Once I get out of nationals, I’m a free agent. Then I can do whatever I want,” he said.

Joyce told Sky News he retained his Nationals membership but gave conflicting answers when asked if he would continue to sit in the Nationals party room in parliament.

“I will not be involved with the National Party at a political level in Canberra,” Joyce said, adding: “I will decide as we go along, leave that to me.”

On Monday, Littleproud said he had no animosity towards Joyce but insisted the New England MP had to accept the fact he had been relegated to the backbench.

“You have to accept the decision of the leader and who will be in the shadow cabinet,” Littleproud told Sky News.

Opposition Leader Sussan Ley confirmed she had spoken to Joyce but gave no details of the meeting and said Joyce’s departure was a matter for the National Party.

“This was just a check-in between two people who have been at the university for many years,” Ley said.

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