‘Coming for a while’: Nationals heavyweight Barnaby Joyce offers candid reflection on brutal exile to Opposition backbench

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‘Coming for a while’: Nationals heavyweight Barnaby Joyce offers candid reflection on brutal exile to Opposition backbench

Barnaby Joyce says it is “a bit disappointing” he learned of his exile to the opposition backbench via the media but that he saw “it coming for a while”.

Opposition leader Sussan Ley unveiled her shadow cabinet on Wednesday after striking a new Coalition agreement with David Littleproud, officially ending the historic, albeit brief, separation of the Liberal and National parties.

Mr Joyce, one of the staunchest pro-Coalition MPs in the National Party, was not among the names in the Opposition Leader’s new-look shadow executive.

He said on Thursday he “read about it about a week before it happened, but that’s politics”.

Camera IconBarnaby Joyce says it is ‘disappointing’ he learned of his exile to the opposition backbench via the media but that he saw ‘it coming for a while’. NewsWire / Martin Ollman Credit: News Corp Australia

“That’s life — move on to other things,” he told Nine.

Mr Joyce was among several senior MPs Ms Ley reached out to in an effort to save the Coalition and maintained his support for the 80-year-old political partnership both publicly and through backchannels.

He said it he did not know why the Nationals leader sent him to the backbench, but said it was Mr Littleproud’s “prerogative”.

Though, he did dismiss Mr Littleproud’s framing as “generational change”.

“It’s not about generational change,” Mr Joyce said.

“There are people who are older than me now. I’m 58, I’m not 103.”

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He pointed out Mr Littleproud, 48, would be the youngest.

“So it’s not generational change, it’s politics and personalities,” Mr Joyce said.

“Let’s call it for what it is, let’s be straight.

“(I’m) a little bit disappointed that I think everybody in the (shadow) cabinet … voted for David.

“It’s hard to bring back unity because you’re going to have to have some authority over every corner of the room, and that’s difficult.

“But nonetheless, that’s the prerogative, that’s happened.”

More to come.

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