CANBERRA, Australia: Australia’s beleaguered deputy prime minister withstood a parliamentary vote Thursday that would have called for his firing after revelations of a relationship with a former staffer and a free-residence deal with a wealthy political donor.
The opposition Labour Party had hoped disaffected lawmakers in Barnaby Joyce’s own Nationals party would back their motion, but coalition lawmakers in the House of Representatives held firm and defeated it 73 to 70.
Joyce has said his marriage breakdown and his current relationship with Vikki Campion are private matters. But questions have been raised about her employment in two government jobs after working in Joyce’s office and the rent-free apartment where Joyce and Campion live.
Opposition lawmaker Mark Dreyfus said a ministerial code of conduct stated that ministers “must not seek or encourage any form of gift in their personal capacity” and must act with regard for integrity, fairness, accountability, responsibility, and the public interest.
“Very high-flying words setting a very high standard, but one which this deputy prime minister has woefully failed,” Dreyfus told Parliament.
Joyce said he wasn’t a minister late last year when businessman and political donor Greg Maguire offered him the apartment for six months rent-free.
The High Court disqualified Joyce from Parliament in October because of a constitutional ban on dual citizens standing for election. Joyce argued he was unaware that he had inherited Kiwi citizenship from his New Zealand-born father. He renounced his second nationality and comfortably won a by-election in December.
Joyce said Maguire offered the apartment before that election because Joyce was estranged from his wife and was “living out of a suitcase.” Maguire could not be immediately contacted on Thursday for comment.
“My personal circumstances have been up hill, down dale in this last week. I accept that and that is the price of a political life,” Joyce said in his first speech to Parliament discussing the relationship since reports surfaced last week that he and Campion are expecting a baby in April.
Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull has publicly stood by his deputy, who as leader of the junior party in the governing coalition would be acting prime minister when Turnbull travels overseas. He plans a trip to the US next week.
Nationals President Larry Anthony, the party’s most senior bureaucrat and a former legislator, said the party had resolved to give Joyce more time as leader to ride out his controversies.
“It’s been an extraordinarily difficult time for the ... party and clearly for Barnaby Joyce and his family and for the government,” Anthony told reporters.
“It’s important people think very carefully about making any significant decisions. You are never wise to make decisions in the heat of the moment. Barnaby should be given time,” Anthony added.
Parliament rejects call for firing of Australia’s deputy prime minister
Parliament rejects call for firing of Australia’s deputy prime minister
Filmmakers defend Berlin festival chief in Gaza row
- Actors and filmmakers rushed to defend the head of the Berlin film festival Thursday following a media report that her job was on the line over a director’s anti-Israel speech at the event
BERLIN: Actors and filmmakers rushed to defend the head of the Berlin film festival Thursday following a media report that her job was on the line over a director’s anti-Israel speech at the event.
Syrian-Palestinian filmmaker Abdallah Al-Khatib kicked off a controversy during Saturday’s closing ceremony by accusing Germany of being complicit in genocide in Gaza through its support for Israel.
German tabloid Bild had reported that Tricia Tuttle was due to be dismissed at an emergency meeting on Thursday, citing sources close to state-owned KBB, the company that runs the festival.
Culture minister Wolfram Weimer’s office confirmed the meeting had taken place but made no mention of Tuttle being sacked, stating that discussions had been “constructive and open” and would “continue in the coming days.”
A group of cinema luminaries including Tilda Swinton, Todd Haynes, Sean Baker and Tom Tykwer signed an open letter defending the Berlinale as a forum for free expression.
“As filmmakers in Germany and beyond, we are following the debates surrounding the Berlinale and the discussion about the dismissal of Tricia Tuttle with great concern,” they wrote. “We defend the Berlinale for what it is: a place of exchange.”
Angry rows over the Israel-Palestinian conflict have repeatedly rocked the Berlinale, held every February as Europe’s first major film festival of the year.
Environment Minister Carsten Schneider walked out of Saturday’s closing ceremony, labelling Khatib’s remarks “unacceptable.”
Germany, as it has sought to atone for the horrors of the Holocaust, has been a steadfast supporter of Israel, and criticism of Israel’s conduct in Gaza has been more muted than in many other countries.
Conservative lawmaker Ellen Demuth was among those who condemned the “antisemitic incident” at the awards ceremony and urged “a fresh start at the top of the film festival.”
The Berlinale Team in an Instagram post meanwhile defended Tuttle, praising her “clarity, integrity and artistic vision.”
The writers’ association PEN Berlin said Khatib’s comments were protected by freedom of expression and that if Tuttle were to be sacked over them, it would cause “immense damage” to the festival.
“Such wanton destruction of the German cultural scene, such self-inflicted insularity, must not be allowed to happen,” it said.
The backdrop of the Middle East conflict led to a tense 76th edition of the festival from the start.
More than 80 film professionals criticized the Berlinale’s “silence” on the Gaza war in an open letter, accusing the festival of censoring artists “who reject the genocide” they believe Israel has committed in Gaza.
Award-winning Indian writer Arundhati Roy withdrew from the festival after the jury president, German director Wim Wenders, said cinema should “stay out of politics” when asked about Gaza.
