Political argument erupts over treatment of former Labor MP in Queensland parliament
The death of former Labor MP Jimmy Sullivan has sparked a bitter political debate over the functioning of the Queensland parliament, with both major parties pointing fingers at the treatment of the troubled politician.
Sullivan was found dead at his home last Thursday night following a series of personal difficulties including the death of a child, substance abuse, post-traumatic stress disorder and his expulsion from the Labor Party.
On Monday, opposition treasury spokeswoman Shannon Fentiman singled out Prime Minister David Crisafulli and Deputy Prime Minister Jarrod Bleijie’s treatment of Sullivan in parliament, calling parliament “toxic.”
“I think Shannon Fentiman contributed to that,” Housing Minister Sam O’Connor said on Tuesday.
After being kicked out of the Labor party last May for failing to comply with the back-to-work plan, a clearly distraught Sullivan has come under sustained attack from the government benches.
Sullivan has been repeatedly accused of domestic violence under parliamentary privilege, an allegation he has denied.
“I have used words here that we can describe as unparliamentary. I have taken an oath. That is the basis of these matters,” Sullivan told parliament on May 22 last year.
“My legal team says they’ve never seen a case dismissed so quickly. That’s the point.”
Bleijie responded from the other end of the room: “I swore, but the cops never came to my house.”
On Tuesday, O’Connor said all politicians needed to reflect on their behavior and the tenor of the political debate.
“We have to be sensitive to the public’s concerns on this issue and what the public thinks about politicians in general,” he said.
“This is a truly tragic situation and I don’t know if some of the comments I’ve seen from Labor will be helpful.”
Fentiman said the tone within parliament was determined by parliamentary leaders.
“I think it’s an important time for the prime minister and the deputy prime minister to reflect on some of the things they said in parliament and for all of us to reflect on our own behavior,” he said.
“Queenslanders will rightly be shocked by some of the images of how Jimmy was treated here.”
O’Connor parried this criticism of her leaders in the LNP.
“I think it was around the time Labor fired him without much explanation,” he said.
“So I think if there is self-reflection, that should be a part of it.”
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