“Malcolm rang and advised he wanted me back on the front bench as the Assistant Minister to the Deputy Prime Minister and I was very pleased to accept,” Mr Hartsuyker said.

Mr Hartsuyker said while his name had not necessarily been touted in recent days as one of the possibles for the new cabinet, it was not a complete surprise.

“I have been around for a long time and I have been on the front bench previously.”

Today (Tuesday) has been a busy one –  with the swearing-in ceremony by the Governor General, Sir Peter Cosgrove, this morning followed by back-to-back briefings.

Mr Hartsuyker described his new role as “basically assisting the Deputy Prime Minister with his huge workload”.

“We have discussed various areas but we are still refining it and nothing has been decided as yet.

“My first priority is to deliver for the people of Cowper, as their elected representative in Canberra.

“There are a number of election commitments to fulfill as well as work that was previously committed and is in the pipeline.”

He went on to list the Kempsey Cinema, the upgrade of the Jetty Foreshores in Coffs Harbour, the airport in Port Macquarie as well as closed circuit television security in Kempsey, South West Rocks, Crescent Head and Coffs Harbour’s Park Beach Plaza.

“I want to get those things rolling – plus I want to keep the pace up on the Pacific Highway upgrade and implement the Government’s Regional Jobs and Investment Plan.

“That plan comes with $200 million of funding and I would like to see businesses in Cowper taking advantage of that – I believe it can offer a great boost to the region.”

He highlighted the advantages that could flow from being close to the pulses of the Deputy Prime Minister’s agriculture and water resources portfolios.

“There has been a resurgence in agriculture in Cowper and its importance for the region – in that way my role has local as well as national relevance.”

Asked about the excellent performance of The Nationals at the election, Mr Hartsuyker said theirs had always been a stable political party and their campaign focused on talking to people about issues that were specific to them.

“People appreciated that – we didn’t offer a scare campaign like Labor did, we offered a vision.”

And as for any irony in the fact that he didn’t get a ministerial position first time around with Barnaby Joyce at the helm and is now his assistant, Mr Hartsuyker said it was only a question of numbers.

“By virtue of winning more seats, the National  Party earned more seats at the ministerial table.”

He would not be drawn on the possibility of a future ‘celebrity’ challenge by Independent Rob Oakeshott, except to say that “any individual can decide to run … my job is to deliver for the people of Cowper”.