Queensland Premier David Crisafulli warns LNP to heed members’ print complaints

Queensland Premier has warned his party headquarters not to “sweep under the carpet” calls for an external audit into election printing, after revelations about a top official and his mother.

Queensland Premier David Crisafulli. Picture: Richard Walker

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David Crisafulli has warned his party headquarters not to “sweep under the carpet” calls for an external audit into election printing, after revelations a top official and his mother have financial links to the LNP’s main print ­supplier.

The Liberal National Party has so far rebuffed calls from grassroots members and branches to order an independent external audit and investigation into the party’s relationship with Sunshine Coast-based EPM Print Group.

LNP deputy state director Matt Chadwick – who has organised the party’s campaign logistics and printing since late 2022 – and his mother are the former owners of the company, and are still owed money by the present owners.

The Australian in June revealed that the Chadwicks provided the current owners with a multimillion-dollar vendor fin­ance loan in 2022 to allow them to buy the business, and Matt Chadwick’s mother, Wendy Chadwick, and a family company are still receiving monthly payments from EPM Print Group.

Mr Chadwick organised about $2.3m in printing by EPM for the LNP’s local, state and federal election campaigns in the past 18 months. He and the LNP have denied all wrongdoing.

LNP deputy state director Matt Chadwick. Picture: Liam Kidston

Wendy Chadwick, mother of Matt Chadwick.

Members in the LNP’s state branch of Greenslopes, in Brisbane, and Flynn, in central Queensland, have passed motions calling on the party to order an audit and investigation – by a company such as KPMG or PwC– into the printing and Mr Chadwick’s role, in the wake of The Australian’s reporting.

In response to the push from the branches, an LNP spokesman this week said former LNP minister Ian Walker was already conducting an “independent review” of the federal election campaign, and he had “full authority to make recommendations on any matter he sees fit”.

The Queensland Premier on Wednesday warned the LNP not to forget the party was a “grassroots political movement, and if grassroots members raise things, they should be listened to, they should be treated with respect and they should get a response”.

Mr Crisafulli said he had not received complaints from state candidates or party members “but I’m mindful, I’ve read (The Australian’s) report, and I’m mindful about the feedback from the grassroots and that shouldn’t be swept under the carpet,” he said.

The LNP spokesman said Mr Walker would consider submissions from members and had “unfettered access to all aspects of the campaign, including in the weeks leading up to election day, to ensure he has the full picture”.

Former solicitor Mr Walker was an LNP MP for the Brisbane seat of Mansfield between 2012 and 2017, and the one-term Newman government’s minister for science and information technology for nearly two years. He has a long history with the party, serving as president of the Young Liberals in 1979 and on the state executive of the Liberal Party in 1983, and was a strong backer of the LNP merger in 2008.

It is understood both Mr Walker’s review, which had a deadline for submissions on June 6, before The Australian’s investigation about the LNP’s printing was published, and a review of the state election campaign by Carol Cashman and Don McDonald will be released soon.

An LNP spokesman in June said there was “zero financial impact” to the Chadwick family from any decision to “award or not award work to EPM” and the conflict of interest was handled properly.

The issue is expected to be raised at the party’s state executive meeting on Friday next week.