In his memoir, former PM writes of his anger over Barnaby Joyce’s affair, tells how Credlin ‘dominated’ Abbott and savages George Christensen’s ‘hypocrisy’

This article is more than 5 months old

This article is more than 5 months old

Malcolm Turnbull has revealed details of a rare moment of prime-ministerial calm interrupted by the intrusion of Barnaby Joyce’s sex life.

In his memoir A Bigger Picture, to be released on Monday, Turnbull tells of sitting quietly in his Parliament House office on Thursday 11 May 2017, contemplating the reception of the budget delivered that Tuesday.

Then two senior members of his staff brought news that a Daily Telegraph reporter had learned that Joyce had accompanied his press secretary, Vikki Campion, to a doctor’s appointment. The purpose, it was understood, was for Campion to have a pregnancy test.

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Turnbull was shocked, and soon so was the entire Australian political commentary complex as the deputy prime minister’s private life became the talk of the nation.

It all led to the unprecedented “bonk ban” edict from Turnbull to his ministers.

There is another important factor involved in that episode and it goes to a sub-theme of Turnbull’s book – the question of trust.

Some of his past associates will not appreciate their appearances in this book, and there will be claims of confidences betrayed. But Turnbull clearly believes he dispenses trust too readily and that some of his political acquaintances and co-workers didn’t deserve it.

“That said, over the years I’ve been accused by colleagues of being too trusting on matters of this kind,” he writes.

He initially accepted Joyce’s assurance he was supporting Campion because she had no family to help her through a difficult time. “He gave me an unequivocal assurance he wasn’t in a sexual relationship with Vikki,” Turnbull writes.

He argues that he does not criticise Joyce on moral grounds, although he branded him “a champion of traditional marriage while practising traditional adultery”.

He was angry because towards the end of that year his government was recovering in opinion polls but “the Barnaby Joyce scandal derailed all that”.

So in February he changed the ministerial code of conduct to bar ministers from having sex with staff, a move which, interestingly, only Scott Morrison and Christopher Pyne strongly backed in cabinet.

There was a broader question of his personal responsibilities once the Joyce-Campion relationship was obvious: “How could I confirm the deputy prime minister of Australia had lied to the prime minister?”

It wasn’t the only time the possibility of unsavoury sexual activity landed on prime minister Turnbull’s desk – figuratively of course. And again the question of trust was involved.

On 15 September 2017, the then Australian federal police commissioner, Andrew Colvin, asked for a private meeting to impart what Turnbull calls “uniquely awkward” news.

Police were concerned that the Nationals MP George Christensen since 2014 had spent up to 100 days a year overseas, mainly visiting the Philippines. He was staying at “seedy hotels” in Angeles City, the red-light areas of Manila, where he went to bars. Philippine and Australian police were concerned he might be breaking laws or become a target for blackmail.

An investigation found that the MP – described by Turnbull as “a young man, grossly obese and single at the time” – had not done anything illegal. The conclusion didn’t come until June 2018.

This time Turnbull takes a stark moral stance. He says “it beggars belief” an MP could spend nearly a third of the year overseas, on full pay, with the Nationals either not knowing or not caring.

Of Christensen’s trips, he says: “The hypocrisy made me sick.”

He also notes that the north Queensland MP was a conservative with a statue of the Virgin Mary in this office and a tattoo of her on his shoulder.

Christensen has always maintained that he was visiting his fiancee in the Philippines and all other allegations are a “smear campaign” from Labor and a “former very senior Liberal MP”.

There were other suggestions of a blending of sex and politics during Turnbull’s Canberra career, according to his book. And again the matter of trust.

It should be remembered when reading of this period that Turnbull and Tony Abbott have a history of hostility; they ousted each other from the Liberal leadership.

That’s one reason Turnbull takes a close look at the partnership of Abbott as prime minister with his chief of staff, Peta Credlin, in which he sees Credlin as the boss. “In all my life I’ve never known a leader more dominated by another than Abbott was by Credlin,” Turnbull writes.

This was “at odds with Abbott’s carefully cultivated image as the hairy-chested, bike-riding, firefighting alpha male, complete with a swagger that would put a sailor to shame”.

“He worshiped and feared her,” Turnbull writes.

There has never been any evidence the pair were more than friends and political associates, no matter the gossip.

Turnbull puts it this way: “Peta has always strongly denied that she and Tony were lovers. But if they were, that would have been the most unremarkable aspect of their friendship.”

He writes that big decisions were made without cabinet agreement and damaging allegations about him were leaked to reporters by, he suggests, the prime minister’s office.

“Neither Abbott nor Credlin were prepared to work with a conventional cabinet system where matters were discussed candidly in private, decisions were taken collectively and then announced,” he writes.

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One politician Turnbull did get on with, without admiring him, was the US president, Donald Trump. He has known a few billionaires in his time “and then one thing I have learned with bullies is that sucking up to them is precisely the wrong way to go”.

At 9am on a Sunday morning in Sydney, Turnbull sat down to have a telephone chat with Trump to preserve an existing agreement for the US to take some refugees from Manus Island.

Trump sounded tired but was friendly until the refugee deal was raised, when he started pleading angrily the agreement would embarrass him. The president kept talking over the prime minister.

Finally he agreed to it, on the basis of the close alliance with Australia, Turnbull writes.

He and Australian officials kept the transcript of the call secret, even when a White House leak claimed Trump had “blasted” Turnbull.

Later it was leaked in the US. Can’t trust some people.

Joyce declined to directly comment on the book’s references to him but he told Guardian Australia: “I accept my moral failings against Malcolm’s obviously unblemished record.”

George Christensen has been contacted for comment.