Analysis: A political tiger who will never be tamed

After a period of peace, the Tiger in the Long Grass, Jo-Ann Miller, has pounced.

AFTER a period of peace, the Tiger in the Long Grass, Jo-Ann Miller, has pounced.

And true to form, the renegade Bundamba MP and self-declared corruption buster’s attack has been timed with brutal efficiency to inflict maximum damage on the Palaszczuk Government. Regardless of whether she runs for the Ipswich mayoralty – and big questions remain about whether she will – Miller’s ruminating is another distraction that Labor does not need.

Maverick Labor MP Jo-Ann Miller loses support Left, Right and with former ally the CFMEU

Labor MP Jo-Ann Miller says Jackie Trad integrity issue hurting Labor

Maverick MP Jo-Ann Miller blasts colleagues for leaks

Given nominations for local government elections don’t close until early March, the Miller for Mayor brouhaha could cast a pall over the first fortnight of state parliament.

While the Government was keen to get on the front foot in 2020, with an election looming in October, these sitting weeks were already at risk of being overshadowed by the administration’s forced retreat over Trad laws.

Many Labor figures will be chuffed that Miller is contemplating a shift to council politics.

She’s been a thorn in the side of Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk ever since quitting the ministry in a huff after being told she was being stripped of the police portfolio in late 2015.

But a run for mayor raises numerous issues for the Palaszczuk Government.

Not least of these is the prospect of a by-election in Bundamba, which will be trickier than it appears on paper, potentially around the same time as the state budget. Some might have thought Miller’s prowling days were done after a quiet 2019. But this tiger hasn’t lost its stripes.

Meanwhile, Jann Stuckey’s decision to resign will test Deb Frecklington’s leadership. Stuckey’s Currumbin seat is marginal and Labor desperately wants to win more ground on the Gold Coast. By-elections usually go against government so an LNP loss would create questions about whether Frecklington should lead her party to the election.