Mal Brough, the federal LNP member for Fisher in Queensland, has announced that he will not be contesting this year’s election.
Brough, 54, first entered parliament as the member for Longman, also in Queensland, at the 1996 federal election. He was re-elected in 1998, 2001 and 2004 but was defeated at the 2007 election.
He re-entered the House of Representatives as the member for Fisher at the 2013 election, after winning preselection in 2012. The then sitting member for Fisher was Peter Slipper, who had left the Liberal National Party after he accepted the Speakership from the Gillard government in 2011. Slipper and Brough came into conflict over James Ashby and a police investigation is proceeding into whether Brough and Ashby broke the law in relation to access to the former Speaker’s official diary.
Brough served as a minister in the Howard government between 2001 and 2007. As the Minister for Indigenous Affairs, he presided over the Northern Territory intervention.
Brough was not offered a ministerial position in Tony Abbott’s government in 2013. When Turnbull overthrew Abbott in September 2015, he made Brough Special Minister of State. Brough stood aside in December after pressure over the police investigation into the Slipper affair. He resigned from the ministry prior to the recent reshuffle.
Brough’s departure brings to eight the number of coalition members of the House who have announced their retirement ahead of the election. The others are: Bruce Scott, Andrew Southcott, Bruce Billson, Philip Ruddock, Andrew Robb, Warren Truss and Ian Macfarlane.
Statement from Mal Brough MP.
Announcement: Federal Member for Fisher
Today I am announcing that I will not be contesting the next Federal election.
I thank the people of Fisher for their support at the last election and the trust they placed in me to be their voice in Canberra.
It has been a privilege and honour to represent this generous community.
I would also like to thank the Fisher LNP membership for their continued support, encouragement and trust.
