Former Mallee MP Andrew Broad to run for Division 7 on the Fraser Coast council

A married ex-MP, who quit his Federal seat in Victoria after messages to a woman on a “sugar baby” site surfaced, says his wife “still loves” him and he’s ready to serve his new Queensland city.

Former Nationals member for Mallee Andrew Broad (pictured during Question Time in the House of Representatives at Parliament House in Canberra) is running for the Fraser Coast council. (AAP Image/Mick Tsikas) NO ARCHIVING

A former Federal MP, who quit his seat in 2018 after arranging to have dinner with a woman on a “sugar baby” website is hoping to re-enter public life – this time in Queensland.

Andrew Broad, a conservative politician who served as a Nationals MP for the Victorian seat of Mallee, now lives with his family in Hervey Bay and this week announced his intention to stand for the Fraser Coast Regional Council.

He hopes to fill the Division 7 seat vacated by former deputy mayor Darren Everard, who resigned from the council in August and was replaced by Jan Hegge.

Speaking to the Fraser Coast Chronicle, Broad said he had realised when he quit politics that success was determined by whether one went home to an empty house or a “loving family” at the end of the day.

He said if he was successful in becoming a councillor, the demands of the job would be vastly different to being on the road for 44 weeks a year (as he was during his time as a Federal Nationals MP) given the local council chambers were only three minutes down the road.

Candidate for Division 7 Andrew Broad.

Mr Broad said also realised that had he stayed in his former job, things at home weren’t going to be positive, but that five years down the track “my wife still loves me”.

In 2017, Mr Broad condemned Deputy Prime Minister Barnaby Joyce for his affair with a staffer, breaking ranks with the Nationals, but in 2018 a woman went public with suggestive text messages he had sent her after arranging to for dinner on a “sugar baby” website, while he was in Hong Kong for a fruit conference.

“I think I’d be lucky to have spent 10 weeks at home last year. That’s no excuse for meeting someone who wasn’t my wife and having dinner with her,” he said at the time.

Announcing his candidacy for the council seat this week, Mr Broad said his decision to return to public life had nothing to do with money, as he ran a successful farming business, nor was it about “profile”.

He felt the lessons he learned as a Federal MP would be invaluable in bringing projects to life on the Fraser Coast.

Mr Broad said the Fraser Coast was an idyllic location, but “our quality of life will only be maintained if the right choices are made”.

Nationals MP Andrew Broad delivers his valedictory speech in the House of Representatives at Parliament House in Canberra, Wednesday, April 3, 2019.

“We must not become just another congested mega city by the coast, crammed for traffic, no public spaces and inadequate health services,” he said

“Growth without strategic planning and effective advocacy results in the loss of our unique character.

“The people who live here deserve the same services as every Australian.

Andrew Broad Nationals MP with wife Rachel in Red Cliffs just outside Mildura. Picture: Jason Edwards

“A healthy lifestyle, with sporting facilities, parks, and a beautiful esplanade by the bay.

“Access to modern and well-staffed hospitals and health services, with adequate airlinks to ensure the best specialist services for our community.

“Expanded education opportunities, vocational training that encourages our youth to stay and make our town better.

“Wildlife corridors, so that our suburbs are a vision of green, not just tin and tile roofs.

“Enhanced access to our waterways, to try and catch that elusive fish, to value and enjoy our marine environment.

“Meaningful employment, with a local government that encourages investment and job creation. And keeps rates fair.

“I believe that a good Local Government can set the vision for the future.”

Originally published as Former Mallee MP Andrew Broad to run for Division 7 on the Fraser Coast council