By Jeremy Sollars
One person who’s particularly relieved the State election date has been announced is the current MP for Southern Downs Lawrence Springborg.
The veteran local member announced late in 2016 that he would quit State politics at the next election, after representing the Southern Downs, Granite Belt and surrounding regions in State Parliament for 28 years over 10 terms of office.
Mr Springborg, 48, became the youngest MP in Queensland history to be elected to office, when he won the former seat of Carnavon – based on Stanthorpe and Goondiwindi – for the Nationals at the 1989 election at the age of 21.
A boundary redistribution created the seat of ‘Warwick’ at the 1992 election, for which Mr Springborg stood for and won again for the Nationals, and it then became ‘Southern Downs’ at the 2001 election after another redistribution.
Mr Springborg – who fought three State elections as Queensland’s conservative leader and served as Minister for Health in the Newman Government – is credited as the ‘father’ of the LNP, after being instrumental in uniting the Nationals and the Liberal Party in Queensland in mid-2008.
Despite persistent rumours he plans to shift to federal politics – namely the Senate – ‘The Borg’ insisted to the Free Times recently that he will “head back to the farm” after the election, meaning the Springborg family property at Yelarbon.
“That’s my plan, apart from maybe doing a little bit of travelling,” he said.
“We haven’t grown any grain for the past 10 or so years, we’ve maintained livestock but that’s been it.”
Mr Springborg had been tipped to replace federal Maranoa MP Bruce Scott at the last federal election, and rumours of a possible move to the Senate have been fuelled on by long-running speculation over the political future of Queensland LNP Senator George Brandis.
Senator Brandis has most recently been touted as a possible Australian High Commissioner to London, following the end of Alexander Downer’s tenure in the role.
Mr Springborg told metropolitan media last year he wanted to leave State politics while he still had “a sense of political passion”.
“These are never easy decisions, but I believe that it is the right decision on balance,” he said at the time.
“I have been very privileged to be given such an opportunity by the people of Southern Downs, to be their parliamentary representative.
“The Southern Downs is the place I have always called home and a place where my family have lived and worked for five generations.
“Ten terms ago, following my first election, I stood in the Queensland Parliament and made my maiden speech.
“I outlined my values, beliefs and aspirations, founded on principles of individual liberty and responsibility, small government, lower taxation, enterprise and aspiration, underpinned by a belief in private property rights and the rule of law and family.
“Those beliefs have not changed.
“I said in that speech that if I could enjoy 15 years representing the people of my electorate and Queensland, it may be time to pull up stumps.
“Yesterday, that 15 years turned into 27 years.
“I know it is time, to close this chapter of my political and public life and move onto the next one, whatever that may be.”
State LNP president Gary Spence greeted the news with “great sadness”.
“Lawrence has been a leading figure in Queensland politics since he was first elected to the Queensland Legislative Assembly in 1989,” he told media last December.
“He has held a number of portfolios, both during times in opposition and in government and led the opposition four times during his career.
“Indeed, there would be few, if any parliamentarians, who could match Lawrence’s record and breadth of experience.”
