Kym Agius
May 11, 2011 - 3:24PM
Jailed former minister Gordon Nuttall needs to provide evidence to back up his corruption claims against past and present Queensland MPs and top bureaucrats, the state opposition says.
Nuttall was imprisoned in 2009 for 36 counts of receiving secret commissions and is set to face the bar of parliament on Thursday to argue why he shouldn't be fined $82,000 for not disclosing the payments to parliament.
Protected by parliamentary privilege, he will be able to say whatever he likes during his 45-minute allocation.
Independent member for Burnett Rob Messenger on Tuesday tabled a list of Nuttall's allegations and a recording in which he details some of the claims.
Among them is a claim Ms Bligh struck a deal with her predecessor Peter Beattie to give him an overseas appointment on his retirement, in breach of the electoral act.
It's also alleged that Mr Beattie enticed former Bundamba MP Bob Gibbs to retire by offering him the Los Angeles trade commission posting, also in breach of the electoral act.
Nuttall also claimed the McGuire hotel family helped raise money for Labor in conjunction with Sunnybank MP Judy Spence and Rockhampton MP Robert Schwarten in exchange for government support for the hotel industry around the cabinet table.
Mr Schwarten and Ms Spence dismissed the claims on Tuesday, while Acting Premier Paul Lucas noted the allegations were made by a "convicted liar".
In parliament on Wednesday, Mr Messenger detailed further claims of inappropriate judicial appointments, government influence over Crime and Misconduct Commission (CMC) decisions, and a government offer that Nuttall would serve just 18 months' actual jail time if he pleaded guilty.
Mr Messenger put forward the fresh allegations as he introduced a notice of motion on Wednesday to debate whether a commission of inquiry should be held into the issue. The motion was ruled out of order by Speaker John Mickel.
Liberal National Party (LNP) leader Campbell Newman said Nuttall's allegations were so far "one man's word" and he had yet to provide any evidence to support his claims.
Asked if he would support an inquiry if evidence was presented, he said: "Let's just see what he (Nuttall) says tomorrow."
"If he expects these things to be pursued by the opposition, the community, or the media, he needs to actually provide some evidence," he told reporters.
Energy Minister Stephen Robertson said he was not nervous about what Nuttall would say on Thursday, saying his words needed to be taken "with a grain of salt".
The minister said he had a "clean conscience".
He said Mr Messenger should have taken the accusations to the CMC rather than air them in parliament.
"What we saw yesterday reeked more of a stunt than anything else," he said.
"I think the member who made those allegations is well known for conspiracy theories."
No comments:
Post a Comment