Townsville LNP hopefuls remain tight-lipped on abortion

KAP leader Robbie Katter has accused David Crisafulli of stealing his voters, while the three LNP candidate hopefuls have stated any law changes are ‘not their focus’.

Townsville’s LNP candidates have refused to give their personal opinion on abortion legislation and whether they would encourage a conscious vote on overturning it if it was brought before the Queensland Parliament.

Despite silence on the issue, the three candidates Adam Baillie (Townsville), Natalie Marr (Thuringowa) and Janelle Poole (Mundingburra) deny they are being controlled and limited in what they can say on the LNP campaign trail.

On Sunday they attended market day booths highlighting their platform directed at crime, health, cost-of-living, and housing.

Although abortion might be considered within the scope of health, it was not a specific subject they were prepared to spend time on after the issue flared up in the wake of KAP leader Robbie Katter stating abortion was something he would like to see overturned.

“I’d be getting ahead of myself if I was to jump forward to that,” Mr Baillie said, while campaigning at Cotters Markets in the Townsville Central Business District on Sunday.

“To be quite honest I haven’t even looked at what the process is should I be elected on October 26, I don’t know what the process is following it.

“My primary object at the moment is to understand what it is Townsville would like to see change, and (talk) about making commitments on that front.

LNP Townsville candidate Adam Baillie at Cotters Markets the day before pre-poll

“So that’s where my focus has been.

“We’ve been very clear with our policy platform and what we’re running on and that’s the story.”

n the aftermath of Mr Katter’s comments, LNP candidates across the state have avoided questions on the issue, as did their leader David Crisafulli who deflected the question almost 40 times within eight minutes at a press conference last week, but Mr Baillie said it had been “absolute mayhem” in the week before pre-poll as he walked more than 30km doorknocking in the Townsville electorate.

LNP Mundingburra candidate Janelle Poole at the Willows markets the day before pre-poll began.

Ms Poole and Ms Marr were also meeting with voters at their booths at Willows Rotary Markets, where they were asked their personal views on abortion.

Ms Poole, the Mundingburra candidate, conceded that abortion was classed within health, and that health was part of the LNP four-tier plaform, but it was not what the residents she door-knocked were worried about.

“And that is what the community is talking about, they want to be safe in their home but they also want a roof over their head,” she said.

LNP Mundingburra candidate Natalie Marr at the Willows market the day before the pre-poll.

“They are the priorities.

“It is not in our plan to make any changes.

“I can’t make it any clearer.

“David (Crisafulli) has been asked the question, all the other candidates have been asked that question, it is not in our plan to make any changes and my personal view is I support that.”

Thuringowa candidate Natalie Marr said her agenda was not being set by other parties, but by the feedback she had been getting from door-knocking through Thuringowa for the past year.

“David’s made it very clear, we are not changing anything, we are staying focused on what’s important to our community and that’s my opinion,” Ms Marr said.

“Of course I have a personal view of what’s important to my community, they are setting my agenda, I’m not being set an agenda by other parties, my agenda has been very well set by doorknocking for 12 months, doing these markets for 12 months, and I’m hearing what people want to talk about and that’s what my focus is on.”

KAP leader Robbie Katter accused the LNP, specifically the party leader David Crisafulli, of stealing his votes by avoiding uncomfortable subjects such as abortion on the campaign trail.

He said party leaders had the responsibility to answer questions about issues they were asked about as he slammed the LNP’s candidates for avoiding subjects outside of their priorities.

Mr Katter said he had been criticised for speaking about his firm views against abortion in the weeks leading to the election, which has given it the attention of an election issue.

Robbie Katter MP KAP Leader and Member for Traeger. Picture: Nigel Hallett

He was responding to a question put to him by a journalist and he said he believed politicians had the obligation to not shy away from uncomfortable issues.

“Why not talk about it? Just because it’s uncomfortable?

“It doesn’t mean it shouldn’t be debated and doesn’t mean I have to agree on the outcome.

“What a silly thing to say it shouldn’t be talked about in an election campaign.

“He (Mr Crisafulli) keeps trying to ride two horses on everything.

“Labor don’t actually do it so much, they get away with saying ‘we support abortion’ and that’s it.

“But Crisafulli comes up to Townsville and says oh yeah bloody Labor they’re pushing all this abortion stuff, and he will say all the right words that people want to hear and trick them into thinking he would be against abortion, but then he goes to the party room and says ‘no I’m with you guys’.

Leader of the Opposition David Crisafulli. Picture: Liam Kidston.

“And then he’s been caught out here and it’s like you know what you should get caught out every now and then because you keep trying to fool people that otherwise would vote for KAP.

“You’re stealing them off us by misleading them and now you’re crying because you’re being caught out on something.”

Originally published as Townsville LNP hopefuls remain tight-lipped on abortion