Federal Parliament: Barnaby Joyce’s high steaks defection to Pauline Hanson’s One Nation looms

Pauline Hanson is preparing to welcome former Nationals leader Barnaby Joyce to her One Nation party as she also begins a seven-day suspension from Federal Parliament after refusing to apologise for her latest burqa stunt.

The Senate on Tuesday voted in favour of a government motion to censure the firebrand Senator but not before it was separated at the request of the Coalition, with the opposition voting against consequences being applied to the One Nation leader.

One day earlier the Queensland politician drew widespread condemnation and accusations of stoking Islamophobia for repeating her controversial 2017 act of wearing a burqa into the chamber and then defying orders to remove the clothing.

The censure motion introduced by Foreign Minister Penny Wong on Tuesday said Senator Hanson’s burqa stunt “mocked and vilified” an entire faith and was “disrespectful” to the Senate as an institution.

“You defied the whole Senate and stayed. I have never seen that. I have never seen someone be so disrespectful to this institution. So, we have given you the opportunity, should this motion pass, to apologise,” Senator Wong told the Senate.

Senator Wong told the Senate that following the incident her child had asked her if all Christians hated Muslims, prompting United Australia Party senator Ralph Babet to call out “I do”.

The Government’s motion was split, after Liberal Andrew McLachlan emerged as the lone Coalition senator supporting its first element, before the second substantive section passed the Upper House 55 votes to 5.

Following her censure Pauline Hanson told Parliament she had been “denied the right by the Senate” the previous day to move her Bill calling for the Islamic covering to be banned from public places.

“You denied me and the people of Australia to have that voice. You chose to shut it down. This is not the first time you’ve done it to me. You’ve done it number of times,” the Senator said.

“The senators that are elected by the Australian people, you dare question me over my respect for this place, the senators in this place have no respect for the Australian people.”

Then during a press conference held after her receiving her suspension, Senator Hanson declared she still “stands strong” by her calls to ban the burka and accused her parliamentary colleagues of hypocrisy.

“If they really believed in what they were saying, they didn’t want to ban the burqa, they denied me the right to wear it on the floor of parliament,” Senator Hanson said.

“There is no dress code on the floor of parliament, yet I’m not allowed to wear it. So to me, it’s been hypocritical.”

“I do have a lot of migrants that do support me in my position on banning the burqa, and I still stand strong by that.”

Senator Hanson’s suspension took place just hours after she hosted former Deputy Prime Minister and renegade Nationals MP Mr Joyce for an intimate dinner in her Parliamentary office where she served wagyu steak cooked on a sandwich press.

In video shared by her staff, Senator Hanson is seen serving two types of salad as part of her promise to whip up a home-cooked dinner for the Nationals backbencher, who has indicated he’ll soon defect to her minor party.

The Nightly understands that Barnaby Joyce will confirm his long-anticipated defection to One Nation at the end of this week over continuing frustrations with the direction of his party under the leadership of his rival David Littleproud.

Nationals’ backbencher and former fellow leader Michael McCormack has again urged his one-time rival to stay in the party after his well-publicised dinner with One Nation’s leader.

While Mr McCormack joked it was a “high steaks” meeting, he encouraged his long-time colleague to stay in the party, which continuously supported his run in the New South Wales seat of New England.

“It would’ve been interesting to be a fly the wall there last night,” he told Sky on Tuesday.

“Look, if they choose to have a meal together, that’s fine. I have meals with people across the other side of the aisle.

“I just hope Barnaby decides soon that the Nationals are the place for him to reside.

“They were the ones who elected him. They were the ones who helped finance his campaigns.

“He owes it to them, and he owes it to those people right across regional Australia who vote for the Coalition to remain with the Coalition.”

Responding to Senator Hanson’s stunt, Opposition Leader Sussan Ley declared: “the less said about it, the better” while insisting Barnaby Joyce was free to “have a steak dinner with whoever he likes in Canberra, and I wish him well”.