"Everyone makes mistakes but the trouble is when they make these mistakes, it's embarrassing. If you are going to be critical of someone be cautious of where you send your criticisms," Senator Williams said.

Leadership win unopposed likely

He also said it was possible Mr Joyce, tipped to replace the party's leader Warren Truss when he resigns, could be elected unopposed.

While most Nationals are expecting Mr Truss to resign by February, a senior Nationals source said he is "keeping his cards close to his chest" about exactly when it will happen.

Senator Williams said: "I think Barnaby will be elected, I wouldn't be surprised if he is unopposed actually."

Senator John Williams Alex Ellinghausen

Mr Joyce dismissed the controversy over the Briggs affair, saying people were being "holier than thou". In an interview with Fairfax Media Mr Joyce said while Mr Briggs had made a "stupid" mistake it was just "what one bloke thought he was saying to another bloke".

One Liberal MP said he believed the matter was resolved now that Mr Briggs had paid a "heavy price" and Mr Dutton had apologised to the journalist and she had accepted it. But there has been some unrest in the South Australian Liberal Party over Mr Briggs' reported resolve to keep his position on the backbench and run again for his seat of Mayo in South Australia.


Professor Haydon Manning from the school of social and policy studies at Flinders University said he was not surprised some SA Liberals are questioning Mr Briggs' future, considering the likely opposition attacks leading up to the election and the "[Nick] Xenophon phenomenon" in the state.

"Even before [Mr] Briggs resigned I was thinking to myself, there is half a chance the Xenophon candidate has the best chance. It doesn't surprise me to hear talk there is really genuine consideration of whether he is electable and whether he should rerun.

"It would be in the mix of South Australian politics at the moment that Xenophon candidates have a genuine chance and I would say in Mayo one of the best chances and even more so now that [Mr] Briggs appears on the back foot," he said.

Meanwhile, Victorian National, Darren Chester, who is Assistant Minister for Defence, made a strong statement about sexism and respect for women on Tuesday night in relation to a separate scandal involving West Indies cricketer Chris Gayle.