Premier refuses to stand down

QUEENSLAND Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk says she won’t stand aside while the state ethics committee investigates her decision to strip a minor party of resources.

Speaker, Member for Mulgrav Curtis Pitt, referred Ms Palaszczuk to the ethics committee over her stripping the resources from Katter’s Australia Party’s three Queensland MPs.

The MPs had refused to denounce federal Senator Fraser Anning for using the Nazi-associated phrase “final solution” during his first speech in Federal Parliament.

The referral followed the Crime and Corruption Commission finding the Premier had technically breached the law, but leaving parliament to decide how to proceed.

KAP Queensland leader Robbie Katter and the LNP Opposition have called for Ms Palaszczuk to stand aside pending the outcome of the investigation. But she says she’s not the first premier to be referred to the ethics committee and she doesn’t see a need to stand down.

She was referred to the ethics committee a handful of times when Opposition Leader, while former premiers including Campbell Newman, Peter Beattie and Anna Bligh were also referred at various times. None had the claims against them substantiated.

Five LNP MPs, including Opposition Leader Deb Frecklington and Deputy Tim Mander, were also referred by KAP to the CCC for calling for the Premier to strip the resources.

The watchdog found they had no case to answer.

Mr Mander defended his party calling for the Premier to be investigated.

“The CCC said the Opposition’s questions were appropriate, it’s the Premier who made the threats, it’s the Premier whose integrity is under question, and it’s her who needs to respond,” he said.