The Source: ‘Cheap, tawdry’: Liberal MP Richard Riordan booted after savage spray in Question Time

Liberal MP Richard Riordan has been booted out of Question Time for a savage verbal attack on Health Minister Mary-Anne Thomas over the fake patient scandal.

Health Minister Mary-Anne Thomas was blasted as ‘cheap and tawdry’ during Question Time. Picture: Nicki Connolly

Putting the squeeze on Victoria’s movers, shakers and headline makers

State Question Time has erupted into chaotic scenes with Liberal MP Richard Riordan booted out for a savage verbal attack on Health Minister Mary-Anne Thomas.

Riordan launched an uncharacteristic tirade on Thomas, dubbing her a “cheap and tawdry” minister after she said he had questions to answer over a fake patient scandal in his electorate of Colac.

Health Minister Mary-Anne Thomas visited Colac Area Health on August 9 last year. Picture: Supplied

Liberal MP Richard Riordan was booted out of Question Time for a verbal attack on Mary-Anne Thomas. Picture: David Geraghty

Staff members at the regional hospital posed as “fake patients” to make their urgent care clinic appear busier during a visit by the Victorian health minister last year, an investigation has found.

The charade sought to convince. One staff member, uninjured at the time, arrived at the hospital in an ambulance. Another staffer, also uninjured, was on a trolley.

Riordan’s wife works at the hospital.

Some government sources have claimed that she was wrapped up in the fake patient scandal, in claims that Riordan has repeatedly and emphatically denied.

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