NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian has stared down a revolt by Nationals leader John Barilaro, who totally folded in a tense political showdown this morning. She had given her deputy premier a 9am deadline to decide whether the Nationals were in or out of the Coalition government.
She let it be known just before 9am that she had booked government house ready to swear in a whole new ministry if he did not back down over his threat to have them sit on the crossbench if koala protection legislation was not reversed.
But Barilaro wanted to keep his bum on the ministerial benches as well, and that was not on according to his boss.
The premier had finally had enough of her deputy’s disloyalty and white-anting, telling him in a brief dressing down last night that she was “disgusted” with his behaviour and trumping his with an ultimatum of her own. His resignation by the morning — or in bushie vernacular the Nats obviously understand only too well, “piss or get off the pot”.
The Nationals called an emergency meeting for 8am to consider their position, and right up until then Barilaro was still giving defiant interviews to his conservative talk-back radio mates.
It is understood that the meeting totally endorsed Barilaro’s stand.
When he strutted into the premier’s office at 9 it was a slightly longer meeting than the previous evening’s three minutes, but still short and to the point.
The premier asked if he was in or out, refused to entertain any demands and he soon capitulated totally.
When he went back to brief the Nats, he claimed because the earlier party room meeting had been leaked that he couldn’t discuss the specifics of what happened with the premier and that they would simply have to trust him.
The humiliation was complete with a statement offering full support to the government until the next election.
There is mention of looking again at the koala habitat bill which sparked the whole furore, or more accurately was used as an excuse for it, but Lib sources stressed no compromises have been made and that Barilaro’s position within his own party and with the Liberals is precarious, if not untenable.
Which is not a surprise given the quality of his National Party supporters. Barnaby Joyce last night, disgraced former federal deputy Bridget McKenzie this morning. Noticeable silence though from federal leader Michael McCormack, whom Barilaro so publicly attacked only two months ago for being a “failure”.
It was the shortest lived coup against premier Berejiklian since… well, since the last one, which was actually this time last year.
A year ago, almost to the day, a group of rebel Libs announced they would move a spill motion against the premier over her controversial abortion decriminalisation bill. It was just six months since she had garnered plaudits for winning the state election.
That rebellion also barely lasted a night and the bill was passed.
Berejiklian has beaten Prime Minister Scott Morrison, who has showed disdain for her political skills during the early stages of the coronavirus crisis when he cosied up to the Victorian and Queensland Labor premiers over his liberal colleague.
Now the PM lauds her handling of the pandemic as “gold standard”.
So “Gutless Gladys” no more. This morning she is being hailed as the new Iron Lady, although she’ll probably still have to keep looking over her shoulder.
Curious to know exactly when Morrison ‘cosied up to’ the Victorian and Queensland Premiers? Citations needed, because Morrison’s blatant partisanship and hostility to both Andrews and Anastascia has been rude, crude and consistent. What has been consistent is Morrison’s drivel and distraction on borders, to divert attention from his responsibility for the aged care deaths and debacle. For the record, QLD with 20% of Australia’s population has had 4.6% of Cover 19 cases and 6 deaths.It has in fact outperformed NZ with a smaller population, more cases and 22 deaths.
An article worthy of a Murdoch stenographer, because for the record. Glady’s land clearing policies are far more likely to kill off koalas than a National’s hissy fit.
Gladys has enought to do, counting donations and accepting direction and navigation for the diggers, tunnellers, wreckers, bashers and contract addicts who actually run NSW throught the bumboy networking. In Barilaro she has a patheitc loudmouthed punk, easily beaten, anticerebral and toxic to decency, sense and responsiblity. The Barilaro type is an old country party type, root every orifice, cut, chop, cheat, steal, thieve, bludge for handouts, subsidies, concessions, bounties, tariffs, schemes, support of any kind. Prince Parasite is our Barilaro. The old country party type has ruined our environment and now tthreatens of future, our lives. National Enemies…
Morrison didnt “buddy up” to Vic and Qld, more than distance himself from The Ruby Princess debacle.
This blame on the NSW government for the Plague Princess fiasco has become ‘pink batt’ meme despite the simple fact, having come from beyond territorial waters, border protection is the responsibility of the Gestapotato’s blackshirts, the laughably named ABF.
True Cuch, but Mr Potatohead is even closer to Scomo than Gladys (measured in knife distance to back), so in a choice between Gladys and Mr P, Gladys was thrown overboard.
They’ve made a “well-fed” living selling out the country : for that government leather to cradle their rump.
As for “Good ol’ Glad” (with her “political skills during the early stages of the coronavirus crisis…”? Like the Ruby P?)? So it’s on to a RC into how her Coalition has “massaged” the juices out of M-DBA, among other “hidden treasures”?
Barilaro, like Joyce, is very popular in the regions and has been very effective in getting the regions hardest hit by drought, bushfire and virus-driven economic pain, something approaching a proportionate response on par with the attention given cities. Sure, cases are low outside the natural habitat/constituency of the information classes, but the flow-on impact of lockdowns, particularly on borders (agricultural freight and worker movement), tourism and hospitality provisioning regions, etc is no less devastating.
Leaders like these – the Nats and their constituency – are, like it or not, the Australians we need to reach if we’re going to survive climate change.
Very true but everything the Nats do has to be considered as to whether its good for smaller farmers and people living in the country or large agribusiness, ‘jobs’ for mining or their land and water speculating mates.
In this case, buy cheap land with bush on it, clear it for pasture and then sell it for profit benefits no-one but speculators and the cattle industry.
Yes, all true enough. Worthwhile reflecting on where the source of brain farts like this one truly originate, though. A couple of decades of (mostly) helpless complicity in the neoliberal assault on their own constituents. I’m from the remote small-town country so probably (far too instinctively) more sympathetic to politicians like Barilaro and Joyce than most here, but when others see National Party inanity/bastardry/corruption it usually looks more to me like the incontinent flailing and petulant striking out of mostly decent pollies totally fed up with being patronised, ridiculed and hustled by their city Coalition overlords. Possibly bring too sentimental. God knows the current crop are more spiv than the Lib variety…
That the fury of the spurned “…mostly decent pollies totally fed up with being patronised..” can be so misdirected, scattergun as to knock off their own constituents and most of the feet – the majority being four legged – is a good example of what happens when naifs are duchessed by the deplorables.