Hastie accepts apology from Joyce over ‘traitor’ cartoon as Hanson doubles down and tells critics to ‘chill’

Pauline Hanson has refused to apologise or remove the cartoon which refers to Andrew Hastie as a traitor. Composite: Getty Images/AAP

Andrew Hastie has accepted an apology from his former colleague Barnaby Joyce over a One Nation cartoon video labelling the former SAS captain a traitor but reiterated that he believed Pauline Hanson was a “lying coward”.

The apology has revealed a split between Joyce and his leader, as Hanson instead appeared to double down on the controversial animation on social media, thanking Hastie for drawing attention to the video posted more than one month ago and saying critics should “take a chill pill”.