Barnaby Joyce cries poor on salary of $211,250 — by Richard Ferguson

Former Nationals leader Barnaby Joyce says he is struggling to make ends meet on his $211,250 salary as he pushes for an increase to the Newstart allowance for unemployed Australians.

Mr Joyce told The Courier Mail today he is “spread so thin” by supporting his ex-wife and youngest daughter as well as his current partner Vikki Campion and his young sons on his post-cabinet resignation salary.

“It’s not that I’m not getting money it’s just that it’s spread so thin,” he told theCourier Mail.

“I’m just saying these circumstances have made me more vastly attuned … it’s just a great exercise in humility going from deputy prime minister to watching every dollar you get.

“So the big thrill of the day to be honest is a cup of coffee. We (he and Vikki) rarely if ever go out for dinner.

“You’re very mindful of what’s coming up in the next couple of weeks and try to make sure I don’t miss any payments.

“There has to some purpose for everything. The purpose of this — I’m a lot more focused on people who don’t have money.”

Mr Joyce said he sometimes goes without heating and slaughters his own meat to feed the family as a result of the financial hit he took when he resigned last year.

But speaking on 2GB this morning, Mr Joyce said he was not asking for sympathy.

“There should be none because I’m on a very good wage, I’m certainly not skint,’’ he said.

“What I’m basically getting through is, obviously by my own circumstances, I’ve got two families.

“It’s not that I’m skint but things are a little bit tighter than one would expect and I’ve got to make ends meet.’’

The new circumstances have propelled him to break government ranks and back an increase to the dole.

MORE: Newstart recipients can’t eat or heat

Eighty-four per cent of Newstart recipients skip meals and 66 per cent don’t use heating in winter, according to a survey to be released today by the Australian Council of Social Service as Labor and lobby groups ramp up pressure on the government to increase the welfare payment.

Pauline Hanson supports his push to increase Newstart but the One Nation leader labelled Mr Joyce’s personal revelations “ridiculous and stupid.”

“He feels skint? Where are the tissues, my god?” the One Nation leader told the Nine Network.

“What a ridiculous, stupid way to explain himself and he is saying Newstart allowance, people need a helping hand, which I’ve been saying for some time now.”

Finance Minister Mathias Cormann stared down Mr Joyce’s moves on increasing Newstart and said any changes to welfare would be determined on what was affordable for the budget.

“Newstart is not designed to be a replacement salary … 99 per cent of recipients of Newstart allowance are on other welfare payments,” Senator Cormann told ABC radio.

“We are spending more than a third of our budget on welfare. These sorts of judgments in the end do have to be made with a view of ensuring that our welfare budget are sustainable.

“We have to make judgments on what is affordable in the budget.”

Senator Cormann refused to comment on Mr Joyce’s revelations that he is struggling financially.

“I am not going to provide commentary on Barnaby’s commentary,” Senator Cormann said.

First appeared in “The Australian”, 29/07/2019