Australia’s Deputy PM renounces New Zealand citizenship amid claims of plot to topple government
If Barnaby Joyce was disqualified, Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull’s centre-right government could lose its single-seat majority in the House of Representatives, where parties need a majority to govern
Australia’s “accidental Kiwi” deputy prime minister renounced his New Zealand citizenship Tuesday amid sheep jokes, Hollywood taunts and conspiracy theories about a left-wing plot to topple Canberra’s conservative government.
Deputy PM Barnaby Joyce revealed his New Zealand connection on Monday, sparking calls for him to stand down as it is illegal for dual citizens to sit in the Australian parliament.
By Tuesday afternoon, Joyce told parliament that authorities in Wellington had agreed he could renounce the New Zealand citizenship unknowingly acquired from his Dunedin-born father.
“We received verbal communication from New Zealand before question time that that has now been accepted and we’re looking forward to the written advice turning up pronto,” he said.
The development does not mean the end of the bizarre affair, which threatens Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull’s one-seat majority in parliament.
But Joyce will hope it bolsters the case to remain in his job, preserving the government’s wafer-thin buffer, until the High Court determines if he is eligible to sit as an elected official.