Palmer to meet with Qld Nickel workers

Clive Palmer says he's not worried about a meeting with axed Queensland Nickel workers and they've got no reason to be angry with him.

Businessman and former federal MP Clive Palmer

Clive Palmer has agreed to meet with Queensland Nickel workers. (AAP)

Clive Palmer says he's got nothing to fear from a meeting with sacked Queensland Nickel workers as he's still pursuing plans to get their jobs back.

The former federal MP will meet with workers axed from his Townsville refinery in coming weeks, but he won't be bringing his fugitive nephew Clive Mensink, claiming he doesn't know where the former Queensland Nickel director is.

Mr Palmer confirmed he met on Monday with Townsville Labor MP Scott Stewart and agreed to a meeting in the near future at a date to be set.

"We want to reopen it, after the damage caused by the administrators by prematurely closing it and sacking over 500 people," Mr Palmer told AAP on Tuesday.

"There's no reason for them to be angry with me. I was the person who put a lot of cash in. It was the administrators that wouldn't take the money and decided to sack the workers, for probably political reasons."

Mr Stewart used a Facebook post to say he'd "confronted" Mr Palmer on behalf of sacked workers hurt by his "disgraceful conduct".

He also said Mr Palmer had rejected his demand to immediately pay the workers their outstanding entitlements and "denied he owed anyone anything".

The meeting would make Mr Palmer "face the music over the devastation he has wreaked on so many local residents up here".

"As a community, we must keep fighting and pursuing Clive Palmer until he is brought to justice and pays what he owes," Mr Stewart wrote.

The Queensland government backbencher later told the ABC Mr Palmer should bring Mr Mensink to the meeting: "If Clive Mensink has any ounce of humanity in him he needs to come back to Townsville."

Mr Palmer said Mr Mensink's presence wasn't discussed.

Mr Mensink has two warrants out for his arrest after failing to appear at court hearings over Queensland Nickel's collapse.

Mr Palmer is facing court action by government-appointed liquidators PPB Advisory to freeze almost $220 million of his personal assets.

PPB Advisory was appointed by the federal government in 2016, as part of efforts to claw back about $70 million in taxpayer funds used to pay the entitlements of sacked workers.

Queensland Nickel collapsed in 2016 with debts of about $300 million and the loss of about 800 jobs.


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Source: AAP



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