Lawrence Springborg has been elected leader of the Liberal National party in Queensland, replacing Campbell Newman, who lost his seat in last week’s election.
The deputy leader, Jeff Seeney, had also resigned after the significant swing to Labor in the state poll, and John-Paul Langbroek has been elected as his replacement.
Both men have previously led the Queensland opposition – Langbroek for the LNP in 2009 and Springborg for the Nationals in 2003-06 and newly formed LNP in 2008-09.
After his election, Springborg said: “We believe we have the right level of competence and experience to take our party forward in what are very interesting times in Queensland.”
He said the LNP remained the caretaker government of Queensland and were responsible for maintaining the functions of government until an election result was called.
He emphasised that maintaining trust would be key to the LNP’s future strategy to win back voters.
“We also understand that whilst there were parts of the LNP’s plan which were rejected by thepeople of Queensland last weekend, such as the asset leasing, there are other parts of our plan for Queensland which still remain extremely relevant for the people of this state, including our fine record of economic management,” Sprinborg said.
“We understand the people of Queensland were disappointed in certain aspects of our government. We understand that the people of Queensland wanted us to be far more empathetic with the concerns they have.”
He said the LNP was still negotiating with crossbenchers about potentially forming government. The election of Springborg and Langbroek was expected to gain the support of two crossbenchers, Katter’s Australian Party MPs Rob Katter and Shane Knuth, who are yet to decide which major party to support to form minority government.
Springborg and Langbroek jointly contested for respective leader and deputy against several other contenders.
Outgoing transport minister Scott Emerson, outgoing parliamentary speaker Fiona Simpson and outgoing housing minister Tim Mander had also put their hats in the ring for the leadership.
Vote counting in the election itself was continuing for an eighth day on Saturday, with four seats still in doubt.
Labor has 43 seats parcelled up, two short of gaining control of the 89-seat parliament in its own right.
The LNP have 39 but are projected to win 42, with Lockyer, Mount Ommaney and Whitsunday expected to go their way after postal votes are counted.
The knife-edge seat of Maryborough is the most intriguing. Independent Chris Foley closing in on Labor’s Bruce Saunders thanks to a strong flow of preferences.
Springborg is seen as the father of the Queensland merger of the Liberal and National parties, a feat fraught with high emotions and many potential enemies but ultimately improving the LNP’s prospects of election as it ended three-cornered contests between Liberal, National and Labor candidates in some electorates.
Springborg has already led his party to three elections, and was handed what some saw as the most difficult portfolio in Queensland and a poisoned chalice, health, in 2012.
The bungled payroll system, introduced under the previous Labor government, which saw thousands of doctors and nurses overpaid and underpaid for years fell to Springborg to fix and he has largely faced the challenge head on.
Seen as a safe pair of hands, unafraid of what can seem impossible tasks, Springborg is also popular with the LNP base, receiving the only spontaneous applause at the LNP launch when Newman mentioned him in his speech.
In 2009 he met with bikies and came out swinging against Labor’s proposed anti-association laws delivering a blistering speech in parliament which included the statement:
“Members of the LNP will sleep better tonight knowing that we have fought against this government’s draconian laws—laws which extinguish centuries of established natural justice rights which have guaranteed an accused person access to the evidence against them. We will also sleep secure in the knowledge that we fought to maintain the fundamental right of free association. Labor members by contrast should be haunted by the spectre of their bans on free association. Labor members should be condemned to the eternal nightmare which follows their trampling of centuries of established legal rights of every Queensland citizen into the dirt as they are doing today.”
Langbroek, on the hand, has been called the “Mr Nice” of the LNP. He was raised as a Jehovah’s Witness and qualified as a dentist, is state member for the safe Gold Coast seat of Surfers Paradise.
Langbroek is well liked outside of his party but seen as too nice by internal critics. He referenced the supposed image problem of being nice in a 2010 interview with Fairfax Media, saying he doubted a toughened-up Langbroek image would do him any good.
He has showed a tough side since taking on the education portfolio, steered the Queensland government through negotiations with his federal counterparts over the proposed Gonski changes, and remaining one of the most outspoken state critics of them.
When Julia Gillard was prime minister, Langbroek labelled Gonski “a cruel hoax” but after the election of the Abbott government he signed a deal with the federal government worth $844m for Queensland.
