Tuesday, September 10, 2013

Absentee MP pops up but only for an hour (AAP) - ( 4U5TR4L14 )

Absentee MP Scott Driscoll has made his second appearance in the Queensland parliament since March, albeit for less than an hour.

The now-Independent member for Redcliffe quit the Liberal National Party in April on the eve of a meeting that would have seen him expelled from the party.

He’s being investigated over allegations of fraud and misconduct.

Mr Driscoll has blamed ill health for his recent absences, which have sparked calls from Premier Campbell Newman for him to quit the parliament.

The MP spent less than an hour in the chamber on Tuesday night, and submitted a question in writing about fishing in his electorate.

It was only his second appearance since March. He last surfaced about five weeks ago.

Both of his visits to the chamber have occurred at night.

His long breaks have sparked debate about whether the rules on absenteeism for MPs need to be tightened.

Mr Driscoll has said he’ll attend parliament when his health allows.

When he resurfaced in August, he challenged findings by the industrial relations commission, including that the funds of a retail lobby group were misused when he was controlling the organisation.

“I don’t believe there’s been any testing of that evidence. I don’t believe there’s been any cross-examination of that evidence,” he said at the time.

Queensland’s corruption watchdog, and police, are continuing to investigate aspects of Mr Driscoll’s conduct.

He’s previously denied allegations he secretly controlled a community group from his electorate office and paid his wife tens of thousands of dollars in consultancy fees.



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