D’Ath’s decade done: Qld Attorney-General retiring at October election

The news

Queensland Attorney-General Yvette D’Ath has announced she will not recontest her Redcliffe electorate at the October state election, while marking her 10-year milestone as its Labor MP.

In a post to Facebook on Thursday, D’Ath said the move was based on many factors, but included a desire to find more balance and “look after me” after what will be an almost 17-year political career.

“I’m leaving in my way, at my time, in a way that leaves behind a legacy I’m proud of, and still work to be done,” D’Ath told journalists at a Thursday media conference.Credit: Matt Dennien

She will remain Attorney-General and an MP until the election, after which she looked forward to new opportunities and seeing her children, now in their 20s, “make their own way in this world”.

Why it matters

D’Ath is the fourth Labor government MP to quit or announce their intention to retire ahead of the October 26 election, which will be a make-or-break poll for the third-term team under a new leader.

Her departure follows the departures of former premier Annastacia Palaszczuk and backbencher Jim Madden – whose vacant Inala and Ipswich West seats will be filled in byelections next month.

Neighbouring MP Stirling Hinchliffe moved to the backbench after declaring he would not recontest his Sandgate seat before Premier Steven Miles’ December cabinet reshuffle. Three LNP MPs have announced their similarly looming October retirement.

What they said

“I have spent the past few years in my various roles, speaking to many people across the legal and health professions about well-being and the importance of looking after oneself, so that you may look after others. That is what I am finally going to allow myself to do,” D’Ath wrote.

Speaking to journalists at a later media conference, D’Ath said while she did not want to talk anyone out of politics, the personal toll of a pandemic period as Health Minister and seeing the worst of society in “graphic detail” each day in the state’s top law office was hard.

She named laws cracking down on dodgy used car dealers and banning Wicked Campers’ slogans as small wins “no one ever talks about”.

“We have an ambitious agenda … and I intend on delivering on that for the people of Queensland, as I have always done.”

Yvette D’Ath

Perspectives

Queensland Law Society president Rebecca Fogerty said D’Ath had built a legacy of important legal reform.

LNP Opposition Leader David Crisafulli offered D’Ath his well-wishes. In the past, his party colleagues have been critical of her handling of various issues in the high-profile and problem-plagued health portfolio, particularly around hospitals and maternity services.

The LNP has also been critical of her delay calling the eventually damning DNA lab inquiry, and decisions around pokies limit increases for Queen’s Wharf.

Miles said D’Ath had spoken with him about leaving in recent weeks, and welcomed her commitment to continue in her portfolio given the scale and complexity of work underway. Both brushed aside questions of rats and sinking ships.

What you need to know

D’ath returned to the Attorney-General role last March, previously holding it between the 2015 and 2020 elections, after a three-year stint as Health Minister.

A member of Labor’s minority Right faction with friend and ally Palaszczuk, she joined her shadow ministry during the Newman LNP government after her win at a 2014 byelection. Before that, D’Ath had spent six year in federal parliament following work in union and industrial relations roles.

She left school at 15 and later attended night classes to get her senior certificate, complete a legal diploma at TAFE, and a law degree. Her Redcliffe seat was marginal before a swing to her in 2020.

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