Michael McCormack has been named the new leader of the Nationals and has replaced Barnaby Joyce as transport and infrastructure minister.
The 21 representatives of the National Party met on Monday morning to accept the resignation of their leader, Barnaby Joyce, and to select McCormack as their new leader.
McCormack, a former journalist who represents the Riverina in south-western New South Wales, was voted in by the Nationals, after a challenge from Queensland backbencher George Christensen.
In a Facebook post on Sunday, Christensen called for the Nationals to review their coalition with the Liberal Party.
“Our formal Coalition (with the Liberal Party) has proved successful over the years but it has always been a compromise and, right now, that compromise is becoming increasingly difficult to accommodate,” Christensen wrote.
“The leftward drift away from the values and traditions that built this country and made it strong has weakened our nation and our people and abandoned those who still believe in Australia and a fair go.
“The Liberals could form government in their own right with the Nationals supporting motions of confidence and budget supply in return for a set of guarantees for rural and regional Australia,” he continued.
“There doesn’t have to be a Coalition.”
Christensen’s run at Nationals leadership was a surprise; he wasn’t speculated as a relevant candidate by commentators last week, and several other frontrunners stepped back in the lead-up to Monday’s vote, in effort to present a united front.
In the end, McCormack praised Christensen for running.
“I congratulate George for putting his hand up,” the new Nationals leader told the press. “It is democracy, that is the National Party. We talk openly about things with each other and once the doors shut we are a party that is united going forward.”
Christensen expressed his disappointment, but said he would support McCormack’s leadership.
“Michael … is a good mate of mine and we sat together on the backbench for our first three years in parliament,” Christensen said in a statement.
“I expressed my views on the need to change the political direction the Nationals are moving in … My colleagues did not agree with my views, and that’s democracy.”
Joyce retreats to the backbench after a fortnight of controversy.
His affair last year with media adviser Vikki Campion was revealed early in February, and followed news of his marriage break-up last December.
Allegations followed of unfair treatment given to Campion, who worked in other National offices during the early stages of their affair, but – according to Joyce – before they were formally ‘partners’.
Joyce and Campion are expecting a child in April.
The embattled National leader then faced multiple attacks from the Opposition over his recent rent-free living situation in Armidale, and whether he broke the ministerial code of conduct by accepting the accommodation from his friend, local businessman Greg Maguire, during his marriage breakdown.
Joyce denied any plans to step down from the frontbench, until the National Party confirmed it had received a formal sexual harassment complaint on Friday morning, February 23.
A press conference was called for 2pm on Friday afternoon, where Joyce denied the allegations, but announced he would resign.
“This current cacophony of issues has to be put aside, and I think it’s my responsibility to do my bit, to make sure that it happens,” he said.
Joyce thanked the people of his electorate, New England, saying they had supported him throughout his recent ordeal. “I don’t deserve the support that you’ve given me,” he said.
“It’s incredibly important that there be a circuit-breaker, not just for parliament, but more importantly, a circuit-breaker for Vikki [Campion], for my unborn child, my daughters, and for [wife] Nat. This has got to stop. It’s not fair on them. It’s just completely and utterly unwarranted, the sort of observation that’s happened.”
Joyce also targeted “leakers” within the National Party for contributing to the ongoing drama.
“Any person in any political party always says, the leaking, the backgrounding, all that, it will destroy not only our government, it will destroy any government,” he said.