Former leader of the National Party Barnaby Joyce has declared that since he was infamously found rambling on his phone while laying in a gutter in Canberra, he has quit drinking and lost 15kg.
Everyone remembers where they were during some moments in history. In Australia, one of those events is that time Barnaby Joyce was recorded flat on his arse on the sidewalk in the streets of Canberra, drunkenly rambling obscenities on the phone.
The only person in the country who wouldn’t remember this batshit moment in Auspol history would be Barnaby himself, on account of being blackout wasted — as he admitted to the Sydney Morning Herald.
“Big swathes of the night I don’t remember,” the MP for New England told the publication.
“And that’s never, ever happened to me before. And I never, ever want it to happen again.”
Former Deputy Prime Minister of Australia seen lying on the sidewalk DRUNK and mumbling on his phone.
— Oli London (@OliLondonTV) February 9, 2024
Barnaby Joyce was mumbling obscenities as a passer by filmed him on their phone. pic.twitter.com/ACBGnwy2ap
Which is why the controversial politician has proudly shared that he has not touched a drop of the sauce since that fated day, and is going on four months sober. Good for him!
“I disgraced myself and I just woke up the next morning and said ‘that’ll do’, so I didn’t have another drink,” he said.
As well as not getting on the booze, Barnaby Joyce also shared that he has lost 15kg in that time due to taking up more physical activity.
“I stopped drinking and went fencing, did farming and just physical work,” Barnaby explained, then added: “People say I’m sharper.”
Barnaby Joyce having a self improvement era was not on my bingo card for 2024, but I am not gonna complain about being wrong.
Former Deputy PM Barnaby Joyce denies being too drunk while lying on a Braddon sidewalk, “that is the most sober I have ever been while in Canberra” pic.twitter.com/yh2TsMDbqf
— The Chaser (@chaser) February 9, 2024
Joyce shut down rumours that he was ever an alcoholic, and cited that it “would have been impossible” for him to quit if he were. Additionally, he also claimed that he hasn’t quit the game for good, and is instead taking a hiatus from the beers. Unless…
“Maybe at some stage I’ll have a beer again, but at the moment, nah,” said Joyce, per the publication.
After he was found on the ground in February, Barnaby defended his behaviour by saying it was the result of mixing medication with alcohol.
Following Joyce’s incident, Nationals politician Perin Davey was accused of being drunk while in parliament due to her apparently slurred words.
#BREAKING 🚨 Nationals deputy leader Perin Davey has admitted to drinking two glasses of red wine before appearing at a parliamentary committee – but tells Sky News “I don’t think I was drunk”
— 6 News Australia (@6NewsAU) February 17, 2024
Watch the video ⬇️#6NewsAU | https://t.co/eU0kSSqP9E pic.twitter.com/8rlU4Dmes2
Though she denied being intoxicated, it did raise questions about drinking culture in Parliament House, and calls were made for politicians to be breath tested.
The culture of Australian politicians enjoying alcohol on the job is a long standing historical tradition, with our first ever PM Edmund Barton eventually resigning from his job when his party lost faith in his ability to stay off the piss.
Some political historians will tell you that it’s more complicated than that, but they’re just boring.
