Barnaby Joyce has ramped up his calls for more stringent privacy laws after arguing with a photographer on the street, a week after giving a $150,000 television interview.

The former Nationals leader denies the photographer's claims he had shaped up to throw a punch at the man, who Mr Joyce said was "hiding in the bushes" outside a church on Sunday.

Mr Joyce said he accepted public figures would get media attention, but laws needed to be changed to protect people such as his partner Vikki Campion and the couple's baby son Sebastian from paparazzi.

Vikki Campion and Barnaby Joyce. Credit:Sunday Night

"These people have the capacity to destroy someone's life," Mr Joyce told the Seven Network on Monday.