SKIP TO MAIN CONTENT

Pyne vows to recontest as Qld independent

Cairns MP Rob Pyne says he won't let bullies chase him out of parliament and will recontest his far North Queensland seat.

3 min read

Published

Source: AAP


Skip to article content

Queensland MP Rob Pyne has declared he will recontest his seat of Cairns as an independent because he won't let bullies chase him out of politics.

Mr Pyne, whose decision to quit the Labor party in March made the Palaszczuk government's already-flimsy grip on power more tenuous, says being an independent has granted him greater freedom to fight for his electorate.

But it has also exposed to him to abuse, including being labelled as a "rat", "compulsive liar" and "megalomaniac" by both his former Labor colleagues and senior Electrical Trades Union (ETU) figures.

"Look, I'm not going to let these bullies and the major parties intimidate me to walk out on the people of Cairns - I'm going to take them on," he told AAP in Cairns on Tuesday.

Mr Pyne said only in March that he had no intention of recontesting his seat, but said he had changed his mind after seeing how Queensland parliament was failing to represent the people.

News that makes sense

Your trusted source for staying up-to-date with the world around you. Get free daily news updates and analysis, straight to your inbox.

By subscribing, you agree to SBS’s terms of service and privacy policy including receiving email updates from SBS.

In the lead up to his resignation, Mr Pyne clashed with Deputy Premier Jackie Trad and former government whip Mick de Brenni, who were last month cleared by the Ethics Committee of allegations they intimidated and verbally abused Mr Pyne on a number of occasions.

Mr Pyne declined to elaborate on which "bullies" he was referring to, but said the outcome of the Ethics Committee investigation was a surprise.

"I would have thought they would have asked to speak to me," he said.

"I'm familiar with due process and all these sorts of things, so I was certainly surprised by the process."

But the umpire's decision must be respected, he said.

Asked about his working relationship with Ms Trad since, he said: "I can not get on personally with someone, yet that won't affect how I vote in the parliament."

"You've got to have a certain amount of emotional maturity in that respect."

Mr Pyne last month introduced a private member's bill to decriminalise abortion in Queensland which is currently before a parliamentary committee.

Revealing his next battleground will be coal seam gas (CSG), Mr Pyne flagged plans to introduce legislation granting land owners greater rights at the next sitting of parliament in July.


Get SBS News straight to your inbox

Sign up now for daily news from Australia and around the world. You can also subscribe to Insight's weekly newsletter for in-depth features and first-person stories.

By subscribing, you agree to SBS’s terms of service and privacy policy including receiving email updates from SBS.

Follow SBS News

Download our apps

Listen to our podcasts

Get the latest with our News podcasts on your favourite podcast apps.

Watch on SBS

SBS World News

Take a global view with Australia's most comprehensive world news service

Stream now

Watch the latest news videos from Australia and across the world