Barnaby Joyce (Queensland, National Party, Shadow Minister for Finance and Debt Reduction) Share this | Hansard source

It is billion. It is ‘b’ for ‘bravo’ and it is ‘b’ for ‘billion’—and that is what it is costing Australia to live at this place. This is incredible. How did we get ourselves into this bind? How could Australia honestly stay with this person for another three years? How could we possibly even venture down the path of living at this philosophical brothel for another three years? Look at the absolute hypocrite that Mr Rudd has made of Minister Wong. I honestly believe that what Minister Wong said was what she believed. But now, in his absolutely mercenary way, he has not only let down the Australian people; he is also destroying his colleagues, one after the other. He does not care who he shoots. He does not care what he does. It is beyond his capacity to have empathy and to actually understand what is happening.

Look at all the people who are going to be cast aside and who are going to be made to look like hypocrites. Whether you are Peter Garrett or Penny Wong—next it will be Combet—you would do well to stay away from the Prime Minister. But there is one thing I do not want you to do: don’t you dare change him, because we want him there. Don’t you dare change to Julia Gillard; you leave Mr Rudd right there, because he is turning into our biggest asset. We will watch tonight with wonderment as they put forward Wayne Swan to try to shade out Mr Rudd. Now we know that this is how far it has descended: Wayne Swan is going to save Kevin Rudd. That is where it has got to and that is what we will see tonight on television. It has really become total and utter pathos.