Former Australian Deputy Prime Minister Defects to Anti-Immigration One Nation Party

Former Australian Deputy Prime Minister Barnaby Joyce has detonated a fresh shockwave through Australian politics by defecting from the National Party to Pauline Hanson’s One Nation, aligning himself with the country’s most prominent anti-immigration party after weeks of quiet manoeuvring.

Confirming the switch on radio, the former deputy prime minister acknowledged that the decision would “hurt” some colleagues but said it reflected deep disagreements over energy, immigration, and cultural direction.

Joyce served two terms as the deputy prime minister, serving from 2016 to 2018 under Malcolm Turnbull and from 2021 to 2022 under Scott Morrison. He is currently an MP in the lower house of the Australian parliament.

Joyce, long a central figure for rural conservatives, accused Australia of having “eviscerated our energy platform on a ludicrous quest to change the weather,” while arguing that population growth driven by migration had eroded Australians’ ability to buy homes and start families. He also insisted that while a nation can include many races and faiths, it cannot sustain “multiple cultures,” adding that Australia must cohere around a single national identity in an increasingly uncertain world.

One Nation leader Pauline Hanson, whose party has enjoyed a rise in recent polls, welcomed Joyce as a political ally she believes can help “turn this country around to make it great again.” She confirmed that Joyce will represent One Nation in the lower house until the next general election. He is expected to then run for a seat in the Australian Senate, the country’s upper house of parliament.

One Nation is polling at about 15% in polls conducted in the last few months – it won 6% of the vote in the last Australian election, held in May this year.

Leader of the National Party, David Littleproud, expressed disappointment, dismissing One Nation as a party of protest that generates headlines rather than meaningful outcomes.