PM calls for Barnaby Joyce to be sacked over 'bullet' comment

The Nationals MP attended an anti-renewables rally yesterday where he compared ballot papers to bullets and urged attendees to “load that magazine” against the Prime Minister and energy minister, Chris Bowen, at the polling booth. 

Albanese lambasted the comments on Sky News today as “completely unacceptable” and challenged Peter Dutton to step in.

“Peter Dutton has had four reshuffles, he should have a fifth, and Barnaby Joyce should go,” he said.

“This is the sort of language which has no place in any part of Australian society, let alone in public life.

“Here you have a guy going to a rally, calling for action, using analogies of guns, bullets, magazines and ‘goodbye’ to three members of the government. What does this bloke have to do to lose his job?”

The former deputy prime minister apologised today for using the metaphor in the wake of the attempted assassination of Donald Trump.

Over the weekend Joyce told protesters the rally against wind turbines that their vote was a weapon in opposing the renewable, to which he compared to a “dog turd”.

“The bullet you have is this little piece of paper, it goes in the magazine called the voting box and it’s coming up,” he said.

“Get ready to load that magazine.

Go, goodbye Chris. Goodbye, Stephen. Goodbye, Albo. And when they see that, they’ll let you in their office for a meeting.”