Scott Buchholz (Wright, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I rise to offer my congratulations to none other than the Deputy Prime Minister, Barnaby Joyce, for his re-election to the seat of New England. He also was a victim of the citizenship bus, as the member for McMillan alluded to earlier on. Barnaby had a primary vote of 64.77 per cent, ahead of Labor's candidate, who received a primary vote of 11 per cent. If the strategy was to bring him unstuck, it actually had the reverse effect. It was a stunning victory and one of the biggest swings to a single candidate in Australia's history—an amazing contribution. I offer my greatest congratulations to him both as a friend and as a former staffer of his—I was his chief of staff. I welcome his return to this House.

I also want to acknowledge and offer my compliments to John Alexander for the work that he has done in this House and associate myself with the member for McMillan's remarks in offering affirmation to John. It is just dripping with irony that here we have 'Captain Australia', a bloke who's travelled the world with the Australian flag on his back and a patriot for us in an iconic sporting landscape, up against someone who was born in Las Vegas.