Government backbencher Ewen Jones insists the leader of the opposition is threatened by him.
But a media appearance on Wednesday suggests it could be the other way around.
Mr Jones fronted the media in Townsville to remind voters of his track record as the local member, and to warn there'd be no development in the region if Labor was elected on July 2.
He insisted he was a "very important person" in Canberra and that his retention of the marginal north Queensland seat of Herbert was crucial to the coalition returning to government.
He was flanked by Attorney-General George Brandis and government senators Matt Canavan, Ian Macdonald and Joanna Lindgren, who said they were there to support and "help" him.
"I'm very key to the government's return," he told reporters.
"If Bill Shorten wins Herbert he wins government - Malcolm Turnbull cannot be prime minister if I'm not the member for Herbert."
Mr Jones didn't hold back in his attack of Mr Shorten, warning of a Labor-Greens coalition government and resurrecting fears of a carbon tax.
He warned that a Shorten government would put a "knife at the throat" of the transport and agricultural sectors in the north and pointed to division within the Labor Party on asylum seeker policy.
"I thought Bill moved from Melbourne to get away from his candidate in Melbourne who was talking about boats, only to come to Townsville and be confronted with exactly the same thing.
"He's enjoying himself up here walking around in t-shirt and shorts, but he'll have to go back down south sooner or later."
Senator Canavan did his bit, insisting Labor governments were notorious for raiding regional funds and putting it into city infrastructure.
And Senator Brandis brought it home, emphasising how "very unpopular" Labor is in the Sunshine State, holding just six seats.
Mr Jones holds the seat by a margin of 6.2 per cent, but Mr Shorten has dedicated most of his first week on the trail to snagging it, setting up camp in Townsville on day one of the campaign and promising to return north over the next eight weeks.
Herbert stands to be one of the biggest Queensland winners from his $3.8 billion boost to school funding and he's also promised $100 million for a new stadium to create 700 jobs.
It's a promise Mr Shorten made last year, but he took the opportunity this week while standing on the field at the home of NRL club North Queensland to question why Mr Jones wasn't willing to match the commitment.
"What sort of planet do you live on if you don't understand the value of 700 new jobs, if you don't understand the value to tourism and small business?
"You don't have to be very long in Townsville to realise it is experiencing the downturn of the mining boom."
Mr Shorten's campaign will move on from Townsville on Thursday, but it's probably not the last Mr Jones will see of him before July 2.
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