Qld premier denies baby Asha influence

Queensland's premier says her government had nothing to do with doctors' decisions to keep baby Asha in a Brisbane hospital to prevent her return to Nauru.

Queensland's premier says claims her government encouraged doctors to keep baby Asha in a Brisbane hospital to prevent her return to Nauru are nonsense.

Annastacia Palaszczuk's comments were in response to Opposition Leader Lawrence Springborg, who questioned whether senior government ministers influenced doctors' decisions.

"This (may) have gone beyond the role of a hospital and into the area of asylum-seeker policy," Mr Springborg told News Corp.

But Ms Palaszczuk on Wednesday insisted doctors made clinical decisions based on the wellbeing of patients and nothing more.

"It's nonsense and, can I just say, this once again is muckraking by Lawrence Springborg," she said on Wednesday.

"Doctors make clinical decisions - ministers do not interfere in clinical decisions of doctors."

Baby Asha, who spent more than three weeks at Brisbane's Lady Cilento Children's Hospital, was released into community detention on Monday after doctors engaged in a 10-day stand-off with the government.

They had refused to release the one-year-old, who suffered hot water burns while on Nauru, until they could be assured she was going to an acceptable home environment.

Ms Palaszczuk's rebuke of her state political rival comes after she and Immigration Minister Peter Dutton also engaged in a slanging match over the issue.

The premier accused Mr Dutton of playing politics with people's lives after he took shots at the state government's support of hospital medical staff and baby Asha's family.


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Source: AAP



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