Barnaby Joyce says One Nation will ‘utilise’ Canavan to expose Coalition divisions
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More news: One Nation MP Barnaby Joyce says his party will “be utilising” Matt Canavan to “get greater ventilation” for its issues, predicting an ideological rupture between the new Nationals leader and his more moderate colleagues.
Speaking to reporters soon after Canavan’s election, Joyce, a former Nationals leader, described the development as “more of an entree to a more fulsome debate” than genuine threat to One Nation.
While accepting Canavan was “more competent” than his predecessor David Littleproud, Joyce insisted the conservative new leader would struggle to find unity within his own partyroom and with the moderate flank of the Liberal Party.
“How long Matt Canavan gets along with [moderate shadow treasurer] Tim Wilson is going to be fascinating. But I would suggest not very long,” he said.
“Matt Canavan is basically a first-class honours graduate in economics … Tim Wilson is a politician.
“So you are not going to be short of material.”
Joyce framed Canavan, his former chief of staff, as more ideologically aligned with One Nation than the broader Coalition.
“There’ll be a lot of times that both myself, Pauline Hanson, and Matt Canavan will all be on the same page. The problem will be the coalition won’t,” he said.
Joyce reiterated One Nation’s desire to scrap the Climate Change Department and leave the Paris Climate Accord, which the Coalition remains rhetorically committed to.
“We believe that the Paris Agreement is net zero with a funny accent,” he said.
“Now, that’s Matt’s position. That’s my position. That’s Pauline’s position. It’s just that I don’t think it’s the Coalition’s position.”
Canavan is the first Nationals leader to sit in the Senate, which Joyce described as a “house of review, not of implementation”.
But Joyce immediately pivoted after being reminded that his own leader, Pauline Hanson, also sits in the Senate.
“This is the game. Pauline is the leader of One Nation,” he said. Pauline
“I know people are running out of ammunition when they think the only thing they can do is try and divide Pauline and Barnaby. Pauline and Barnaby get along very well.”
What they said: “We will be utilising Matt to get greater ventilation for One Nation issues, vis a vis where Matt will be and the Coalition will be,” Joyce said.
“Because you can bet your life it won’t take long before they’re on two different pages.”
Canavan wants ‘hyper Australia’, distances himself from Pauline Hanson
More news: Newly elected Nationals leader Matt Canavan has declared “we need to manifest a hyper Australia”, including increased domestic manufacturing and higher birth rates.
Speaking to reporters half an hour after replacing David Littleproud, Canavan was quick to differentiate himself from One Nation’s “divisive” rhetoric as the minor party threatens traditional Nationals heartlands.
The new leader insisted that Australia had “everything we need” to solve the problems the country faces.
“We need to have more Australian farmers, more Australian manufacturing, more Australian jobs. We need to have more Australian everything,” he said.
“We need to manifest a hyper Australia … We need more Australian babies.”
In a display of unity, Canavan spoke to reporters flanked by the entire Nationals partyroom.
Canavan said he did not see a need for “major changes” to the Coalition agreement, which was reworked last month after a public split over Labor’s contentious hate speech laws.
“[Liberal leader] Angus [Taylor] has done a great job as leader. I’ve worked very closely with Angus in the past and look forward to doing so in the future,” he said.
Canavan, the party’s first leader to sit in the Senate, accepted his election was not in his party’s “tradition” but did not reveal whether he ultimately intended to run for a lower house seat.
As the Nationals face a serious challenge from One Nation, Canavan stressed he had been critical of Pauline Hanson’s Islamophobic comments in recent weeks.
Canavan confirmed that his “great mate” Bridget McKenzie, who failed in her own leadership bid, will remain as Nationals Senate leader.
The new leader has been a maverick figure in the past and was regularly prepared to cross the floor to vote against his own party.
Canavan accepted he had “a different job to do” and would “commit myself to doing that”.
What they said: “I totally reject [Hanson’s rhetoric] … What unites us as a country is more than what divides us,” he said.
“Even when we have these robust debates, we have a wonderful country with wonderful people from all different backgrounds [and] religions. I’m sorry, I worry about where Pauline would take this country, to an area of more division.”
Matt Canavan elected Nationals leader, replacing David Littleproud
The news: Conservative senator Matt Canavan has been elected Nationals leader and will replace David Littleproud, who announced his surprise resignation on Tuesday.
The context: Canavan defeated previous deputy leader Kevin Hogan and Senator Bridget McKenzie in a hastily-arranged leadership spill on Wednesday, though Nationals do not publicly reveal the vote count.
Canavan becomes the first Nationals leader to sit in the Senate.
He is a high-profile member of the Nationals’ conservative wing, and his election may flag a shift to the right for a party that has already pressured the Liberal Party to scrap net zero emissions and support nuclear energy.
Canavan has been a long-standing and vociferous proponent of both positions.
Victorian MP Darren Chester has been elected as Nationals deputy leader, replacing Hogan.
The election process was surprisingly long, with Nationals MPs seen moving in and out of the partyroom for more than 45 minutes.
The vote was held the day after Littleproud, who had led the Nationals since 2022, declared he was “buggered” and announced his resignation on Tuesday.
The announcement was a shock to almost all of his colleagues, though the Nine newspapers reported Hogan was informed ahead of time, an indication he was Littleproud’s preferred successor.
Littleproud also declared his intention to remain in parliament, leaving the door open to serving on the frontbench, and will recontest his regional Queensland seat of Maranoa.
The decision came after months of turbulence within the Coalition, which suffered its worst ever election defeat in May.
Several of Littleproud’s colleagues criticised his role in two Coalition breakups and reunifications since then, and his relationship with former Liberal leader Sussan Ley was a factor in her axing by Angus Taylor last month.
The Nationals are also facing a significant challenge from One Nation, which is now easily outpolling the junior Coalition partner, and is a particular threat in its traditional regional areas.
Former Nationals leader Barnaby Joyce, who has a difficult relationship with Littleproud, defected to One Nation last year.
Littleproud quit before a by-election in Ley’s old seat of Farrer is held on 9 May. While Ley had held the Farrer seat since 2001, it was previously held by Nationals leader Tim Fischer and is viewed internally as natural Nationals territory.
But One Nation’s surge, and a strong presence from independent Michelle Milthorpe, has left both Coalition parties playing down their chances of winning the seat.
What they said: “We’ve got a mighty battle coming up ahead of us. We’ve got two years to get ourselves up in the polls,” Nationals whip Michelle Landry said after the vote.
“We’ve got fights with Labor, One Nation, the teals, so we really need strong leadership. I think we’ve voted for that today, and we’re looking forward to getting on with the job.”
The sources: National Party press conference, Nine newspapers, Matt Canavan press conference
