Liberal National Party leader Campbell Newman cagey on leadership options

CAMPBELL Newman has tried to sidestep the issue of who would be premier if the LNP wins the 2012 election but he loses the seat of Ashgrove.

Campbell Newman

CAMPBELL Newman has tried to sidestep the issue of who would be premier if the LNP wins the 2012 election but he loses the seat of Ashgrove.

The LNP leader and his deputy, Jeff Seeney, yesterday repeatedly parroted prepared lines when questioned on the scenario after a poll showed Labor incumbent Kate Jones was gaining ground.

The party is desperate to avoid a repeat of the 2006 campaign which was all but derailed on the first day over confusion about who would be leader if the Liberal Party won more seats than the Nationals.

In a bid to deflect the issue, Mr Newman repeatedly claimed the LNP would not win government if he did not win Ashgrove.

"We won't win this election if we don't win Ashgrove and seats like Ashgrove. It is as simple as that," he said.

However, the LNP can win without Ashgrove, with the party requiring a 4.6 per cent swing to gain government while a 7.1 per cent swing is required to win the inner-Brisbane seat.

Mr Seeney adopted a similarly scripted response to questions about whether he would seeking the leadership if Mr Newman lost.

"There is only two choices for premier at the next election, it is Campbell Newman or Anna Bligh," he said.

Mr Seeney later released a statement insisting he would not seek the leadership in the event Mr Newman lost.

Deputy Premier Andrew Fraser speculated on a potential revival of former leader Lawrence Springborg.

The issue was prompted after a ReachTel poll showed Mr Newman had lost ground to Ms Jones in the past month. The LNP leader still holds 49.2 per cent of the primary vote compared with Ms Jones' 41 per cent.

But polling experts have raised doubts about the poll, which used automated calls.