Rail slanging match

CLIVE Palmer (pictured) says he is special and the Newman Government should realise that.

But the Newman Government says he is a bully and a name dropper who will not get any special treatment.

The increasingly comical stoush between the LNP’s most generous backer and the LNP Government reached new heights yesterday as the billionaire mining magnate threatened legal action against the government over a coal rail project a w a r d e d t o a n o t h e r c o mpany, instead of his.

Mr Palmer has a history of launching legal action, previously threatening to set his lawyers on Anna Bligh, former treasurer Andrew Fraser and QR National over alleged wrongs.

This week his lawyers wrote to Deputy Premier J e f f S e e n e y demanding within 28 days an explanation for the decision to allow rival GVK-Hancock to build a rail corridor to link the Bowen and Galilee basins with the Abbot Point coal terminal instead of his company, Waratah Coal.

Mr Seeney immediately hit back, accusing Mr Palmer of making threats, acting inappropriately in front of public servants and generally being a bully.

‘‘It is about inappropriately using his party connections, inappropriately talking about his party connections, inappropriately demanding certain timelines from the government, inappropriately demanding certain declarations that he has no right to demand,’’ Mr Seeney said.

‘‘He has been trying to bully and intimidate me and the government.

‘‘He has been trying to use his LNP contacts to get favourable treatment. It is not going to work.

‘‘Clive Palmer will be treated the same as every other Queenslander.’’

In response, Mr Palmer warned Mr Seeney that if he did not respond to his demands ‘‘he can tell it to the judge’’.

‘‘People like me have a special place. We don’t have to take this from the government without them being accountable,’’ Mr Palmer said.

Mr Palmer continued the war of words on Twitter. ‘‘Why is #Jeffseeney destroying billions of dollars of exports and jobs in Qld? Rudd and Bligh govts backed our Galilee rail corridor ...,’’ he tweeted.