It was Nationals’ leader Barnaby Joyce’s turn to front the cameras just before 11am, and he took the opportunity to reject any suggestion that his party’s reticence on climate action was to blame for the teal tide that swept blue-ribbon Liberal seats.
“I’m not in the Liberal Party, I’m in the Nationals,” he said.
“It’d be just the same to say I’m going to blame Tim Wilson for a loss of support in rural areas.
“As is traditional whenever one of the Coalition parties is struggling, there has been rumblings of a split – something already mooted by Liberal Senator Simon Birmingham.
Here, too, Joyce poured cold water on heated speculation, saying his preference was for a Coalition.
But that didn’t stop him emphasising the differences between the Nationals and the Liberals, pointing out that the Nats not only held all their seats, but recorded swings towards them.”We are overwhelmingly the last hope, Obi-Wan Kenobi, for people doing it tough,” he said.
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