Mundingburra MP Les Walker reveals future after nightclub fight
Mundingburra MP Les Walker faced a media scrum, bearing a large bruise on his face, saying he will ‘double down’ to make up for his behaviour in a nightclub fight.
Townsville
Don't miss out on the headlines from Townsville. Followed categories will be added to My News.
- Mad Cow Tavern owner defends venue after MP Les Walker's fight
- Thompson calls for CCTV footage to be released of fight
MUNDINGBURRA MP Les Walker never considered stepping down from his role in politics after a fight at a Townsville nightclub, but said he “understands” why some have called for him to quit.
A nervous Mr Walker fronted a media scrum on Friday morning to explain his side of the story, sporting a large bruise on his face from where he was punched and knocked out on Saturday morning.
Mr Walker, who was visibly jittery, stood by his original comments made to the Townsville Bulletin yesterday, saying he doesn’t remember what happened that night at the Mad Cow Tavern.
He brushed off questions about whether that was just an excuse.
“Well, you can leave that to the medical experts. I was knocked out unconscious so I just can’t recall the incident,” he said.
Police have fined Mr Walker, a 19-year-old man and a 21-year-old man for being a public nuisance, and banned all three men from the Townsville Safe Night Precinct for 10 days.
Mr Walker was out celebrating his 56th birthday with friends and his wife when the fight occurred.
He said his wife was “quite upset” about the ordeal.
Mr Walker has been called out by Townsville residents to resign, but he said that wouldn’t be happening.
“No, because I can’t recall the incident and police are dealing with it.”
“I can understand that comment, but I’ll just have to work hard and I apologise”
“I don’t want to find myself in that situation again. I’ve moved on, there’s a lot of learnings from that incident.”
Mr Walker had sustained some nerve damage to his face, but was optimistic that his injuries would heal.
The former deputy mayor said he planned to “double down” on his efforts to regain the trust of his electorate and the entire city after a “very frank” chat with Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk.
Mr Walker said releasing the CCTV footage was a matter for police.
Originally published as Mundingburra MP Les Walker reveals future after nightclub fight
Massive 350-home estate to tackle housing shortage
A proposed 350-house estate could play a key role in tackling Townsville’s housing crisis by helping older residents to downsize. See where it would be built.
Hindu community ready to celebrate ‘Festival of Lights’
An important day in the Hindu calendar is set to be celebrated by the Townsville community with food, sparklers, dance, music and more. Learn more here.