Barnaby Joyce tipped to contest next election as One Nation Senate candidate in eventual switch for Hanson

Barnaby Joyce is poised to contest the next election as a One Nation Senate candidate where he stands to receive a $100,000 pay rise if he can return to the Upper House and eventually replace Pauline Hanson as leader of the minor party.

On the final sitting day of Parliament, the former Deputy Prime Minister ended weeks of speculation by confirming he would end his three-decades long membership of the Nationals and sit as an independent MP.

Moments before Question Time, the member for New England walked into the House of Representatives to announce his decision in front of several National Party MPs, including Michael McCormack and Darren Chester.

“After 30 years with the National Party, I am resigning from the party … I apologise for all the hurt that that will cause other people. I really do, but it’s not the most important thing,” Joyce said.

“I’ve had no communication with either leader of the National Party or the deputy leader of the National Party to try and resolve this,” he said, referencing David Littleproud and Kevin Hogan.

“With a heavy heart, and I apologise for all the hurt that that will cause other people. I really do.

“What is really important is that the Chinese Communist government are breathing down our necks”.

Immediately after addressing Parliament, Mr Joyce spoke to reporters outside the chamber and claimed to still be undecided on whether to join One Nation but admitted he was “strongly considering it”.

“I haven’t made that decision,” he said and insisted he still did not know when he would decide on whether to join Ms Hanson’s party, after dining with her earlier this week in parliament.

“The membership of the National Party are wonderful people. Walking away, in part, from the party in Canberra is easy. Walking away from the membership is very, very, very hard.”

“It’s just quite obvious, when they talk about generational change, that’s code for get out of here”.

The 58-year-old politician, who is the father of six children from two separate marriages, denies he has financial motivations for leaving the National Party backbench to eventually become One Nation leader.

“That’s completely wrong. Look, my family is also in business. We’re cattle producers. Take it from me. It’s not the money,” Mr Joyce said before heading to the airport to fly out of Canberra well before Parliament rose for the year.

Mr Joyce currently earns a base salary of $239,270 plus superannuation, but if he becomes leader of a minor party, he will receive a loading of 42.5 per cent, taking his salary to above $340,000.

Following Mr Joyce’s formal resignation from the party, Nationals Leader David Littleproud described the decision as “disappointing” and accused him of breaking “the contract he made with the people of New England at the 2025 Federal Election”.

“It is disappointing for the people of New England and disappointing for the loyal National Party members who tirelessly volunteered over the past two decades to support his political ambitions.”

“The Nationals supported Barnaby through the tough times, including during his darkest moments,” Mr Littleproud said in a statement. Close friend and long time ally, Senator Matt Canavan claimed “Barnaby Joyce’s decision to leave the Nationals has saddened 1000s of Nationals members and supporters”. “The Nationals party is not the Parliamentary leaders, it is the the branch meetings, the policy motions and the morning teas of hundreds of different party units. It is a shame a storied former leader has left in this fashion but we are here to make Australia better, not make friends.” “He has not joined another party today, so I have not given up hope that we can convince him to return,” the Queensland Nationals Senator wrote on social media.

Other former colleagues also expressed anger at their one-time leader’s decision, accusing the New England MP of betraying the loyalty they showed him during a series of personal setbacks.

“I don’t think the National Party could have been more accommodating to Barnaby Joyce over many, many years and several trials and tribulations,” says Darren Chester, the Nationals MP for the Victorian seat of Gippsland.

“Barnaby’s appeal electorally has diminished dramatically in recent years. And that’s just a simple fact. I don’t recall many of the members clamouring to have him visit their seat in the last election”.

During Question Time Prime Minister Anthony Albanese repeatedly taunted the opposition about Mr Joyce’s defection to the crossbench, pointing out there was now only 42 Coalition members in the lower house.

“They’ve gone from either being a party of government ... or the alternative party of government into play school. While the person who was Deputy Prime Minister, when they committed to net zero, is outside doing a press conference,” Mr Albanese said.

Earlier in the day former Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull, who fell out with Mr Joyce following revelations of an affair with then-staffer and now-partner Vikki Campion while he was Deputy Prime Minister, said he was disappointed at his one-time colleague’s decision.

“It is disappointing. I think there’s a major problem on what used to be called the right of politics. I mean I think they’ve lost their way, and it’s a real problem”.

At the start of his 20-year colourful parliamentary career with the Nationals, Mr Joyce served as a Senator in the Howard government where he shot to prominence by crossing the floor against the Coalition over a dozen times.