Barnaby Joyce likens One Nation to Reform UK party under Nigel Farage

In his first interview since formally joining One Nation, Barnaby Joyce says he sees comparisons between his new party and Britain’s far-right Reform UK party under populist leader Nigel Farage.

“Yes I do, and not only that, I think Australia’s late to the party,” he told 7.30.

“Whether it’s Farage in the UK, whether it’s [Marine] Le Pen in France, whether it’s [Giorgia] Meloni in Italy, whether it’s the MAGA movement within the Republican movement in the United States, this is a phenomenon across the world.”

According to Mr Joyce, compulsory voting slowed Australia’s entry into the global movement of populist politics but now it’s well and truly underway.

Pauline Hanson and Barnaby Joyce announcing he will join One Nation in Tamworth. (ABC New England: James Paras)

“It’s stickier here, but now it’s happening in Australia where people are more decisive and saying ‘I want more fuller colour in my politics’ … Australia has changed,” he said.

Mr Joyce formally joined One Nation on Monday after weeks of speculation that the former leader of the Nationals was planning a defection.

The member for New England’s move comes as One Nation has gained ground in recent polls at the cost of support for the Coalition.

No racial vilification by Hanson, Joyce says

Barnaby Joyce and Pauline Hanson visited a cattle sale yard near Tamworth before announcing Mr Joyce had joined One Nation. (Supplied: One Nation)

Mr Joyce told 7.30 his new party leader Pauline Hanson does not racially vilify ethnic or migrant groups in Australia.

“I don’t believe that there is a vilification by Pauline Hanson on racial groups,” he said.

“I was going round the sale yards. I didn’t see Pauline vilifying people.”

Ms Hanson was suspended from parliament last month after wearing a burqa into the chamber for the second time in her political career, as she continued to push for a ban on the Muslim garment.

One Nation leader Pauline Hanson was suspended for seven sitting days after wearing a burka into the Senate. (ABC News: Callum Flinn)

Asked to respond to Ms Hanson’s claim in her 2016 maiden Senate speech that Australia was being swamped with Muslims, Mr Joyce responded:

“We have to understand that, with Australia, you can have multi ethnicities, multi religions, multi faiths, creeds, colours. But to have a belief we’ll have a form of multiculturalism which becomes divisive in a form that would make us weaker … we have to become as strong as possible as quickly as possible.”

When challenged on One Nation’s policies towards Muslims, such as calling for a royal commission into whether Islam is a religion, Mr Joyce said: “Obviously Islam is a religion, right? Ok so if you’re looking for a straight answer, I’ve given you that one.”

But he would not confirm whether he had discussed the matter with his new boss.

“I don’t go through a range of reasons to find problems. We’ve been talking about a range of issues for a long time,” he said.

Nationals say Joyce motivated by ambition

Reports that Mr Joyce was considering leaving the Nationals to join One Nation first emerged in October, shortly before he announced he would not recontest his seat of New England at the next election.

At the time, Mr Joyce said his relationship with Nationals leader David Littleproud had “irreparably broken down”.

The former Nationals leader had been left out of the shadow cabinet following the Coalition’s election loss in May, when Mr Littleproud cited the need for “generational change” within the party.

Barnaby Joyce says his relationship with Nationals leader David Littleproud has “irreparably broken down”. (AAP: Mick Tsikas)

Nationals deputy leader Kevin Hogan told the ABC on Monday that the former Nationals MP left his party for his own personal ambitions.

“Kevin is right to a degree,” Mr Joyce said.

“I believe that you’ve got to be as effective as you can possibly be, and I don’t believe sitting in the corner of the Coalition for 18 months not getting a question [in], being basically said, ‘Oh, for generational change, we’re moving over.'”

While conceding his personal desire to play a more significant role in Australian politics, Mr Joyce argued that politics itself is changing and sees himself as part of that change.

“The reality is that Australia has changed in the way it votes and we have to be part of it or get run over by it.”

Barnaby Joyce will be running as a One Nation candidate for the Senate at the next election. (ABC News: Luke Stephenson)

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