Barnaby Joyce has said he is “not looking for sympathy” after footage emerged of him lying on a Canberra footpath and swearing into his phone. The former deputy prime minister attributed the incident to a combination of alcohol and prescription drugs.
Pressure is mounting on the Nationals leadership to demote Joyce from the frontbench amid claims the response has revealed a double standard. Nationals leader David Littleproud has said Joyce will not be demoted, instead offering support. Littleproud told Sky News Joyce had given explanations, some of which were made public and others not.
Greens leader Adam Bandt questioned whether the response would be different if a female politician were in the same situation. “I think if a woman politician had found themselves in a similar situation, I feel like there would be widespread condemnation,” he said. First-time Labor MP Tania Lawrence described Joyce as a “living, breathing caricature of Sir Les Patterson” and said the incident was embarrassing for everyone in parliament.
Joyce told the Seven network he had “made a big mistake” by mixing alcohol with a prescription medicine. “I’m on a prescription drug, and they say certain things may happen to you if you drink, and they were absolutely 100% right,” he said. “I’m not looking for sympathy and I’m not looking for an excuse.”
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese did not comment on the Joyce footage on Friday, saying the MP was experiencing “clearly difficult circumstances”. He added: “I think people will also think to themselves, what would the response be if that was a minister in my government being seen to be behaving in that way?”
