{"id":7414,"date":"2013-08-02T16:14:27","date_gmt":"2013-08-02T06:14:27","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/nofibs.com.au\/?p=7414"},"modified":"2022-05-02T00:22:12","modified_gmt":"2022-05-01T14:22:12","slug":"briskeys-back-in-bowman","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/archive.nofibs.com.au\/briskeys-back-in-bowman\/","title":{"rendered":"Briskey’s back in Bowman: ex state MP riled by Qld sackings says locals are for turning"},"content":{"rendered":"

By Michael Burge<\/a><\/p>\n

August 2, 2013<\/p>\n

Not long after I moved into the southeast Queensland electorate of Bowman in late 2012, I spotted a man sitting in a plastic chair on Redland Bay Road, next to a rather fetching retro caravan emblazoned with bright red lettering.<\/p>\n

The local media confirmed the fellow\u2019s identity<\/a> as the member for the state seat of Cleveland until 2006, the ALP\u2019s Darryl Briskey.<\/p>\n

I overtook him once at Victoria Point; I nearly stopped to meet him at Raby Bay but didn\u2019t indicate in time; I swept past him on the roadside at Chandler; and I eventually caught up with him on busy Shore Street West, Cleveland, to find out why he\u2019s decided on another tilt at representing the people of the Redlands.<\/p>\n

\u201cInitially, I was the reluctant candidate,\u201d Darryl says, laughing. \u201cI\u2019ve been out of public life for seven years, I have a small cafe in the city which is going well, my four children have all finished school, so a year of travel with my wife got put off, because people down here said, \u2018Will you run?\u2019 and at first I said, \u2018No\u2019, I did 17 years in public life.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Darryl

Darryl Briskey, ALP candidate for Bowman<\/p><\/div>\n

So, what was the tipping point that got Briskey back?<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was Campbell Newman sacking public servants<\/a> for no justifiable reason,\u201d he says, his smile draining quickly. \u201cThe sackings affected all the small businesses around me, and we had all gone through hell during the GFC. Then, of course, the flood affected us\u201d.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s been a tough few years for small businesses. Many of my customers are public servants. At the time of the sackings, even if they hadn\u2019t lost their jobs, many were afraid to come out and buy their lunch. Mr Abbott said that he supported Mr Newman\u2019s actions, and all these actions affect not just businesses, they affect people\u2019s lives, and families.<\/p>\n

\u201cSo, you look in the mirror and you think, \u2018Someone has got to do something about this,\u2019 and then you realise that person is you, so when I was next contacted to stand, I said, \u2018Yes, I\u2019ll do it.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n

During my research on the division of Bowman<\/a>, I noted it was named for David Bowman (1860-1916), small businessman, state member for Fortitude Valley, and long-term opposition leader for the Queensland ALP. Although Briskey is now running for a federal seat, his return to politics in many ways mirrors Bowman\u2019s lifelong political career.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ve been an ALP member since 1978. My father was the state secretary of the Australian Postal and Telecommunications Union. He and I used to hand out \u2018how-to-votes\u2019 at every election.\u201d<\/p>\n

I take my time getting to the obvious question, about the massive swing to the coalition at the 2010 federal election. Briskey doesn\u2019t flinch.<\/p>\n

\u201cI am very much the underdog,\u201d he says. \u201cPeople are very unhappy with Campbell Newman and the LNP, and that will be reflected in the federal vote across Queensland. Also, from what I\u2019ve heard from Redlanders, people want a change. Whilst a 10.4 per cent swing is a big swing, Queenslanders\u2019 dissatisfaction with Campbell Newman and Redlanders\u2019 dissatisfaction with their current member are positives for me.\u201d<\/p>\n

So I ask what Briskey thinks Redlanders are looking for in a federal member.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe first thing I would do here is badger the Minister for Communications and the NBN Co CEO about the need for the NBN in Redlands as soon as possible. I believe in the squeaky wheel principle, I never give up, that\u2019s why I achieved so much when I was the state member.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf you do your job as local member, you fight for things, and get them sooner than other places, and that\u2019s what I want to do. When I was first elected, we had a tiny hospital. Now, we\u2019ve got a first rate Redlands Hospital. There was a demountable down in Cleveland called the police station, I had a new police station built.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"CLEVELANDConsidering that Darryl has chosen to hit the road and meet anyone prepared to stop and talk with him, I ask him what being accessible means for his election chances.<\/p>\n

\u201cAn MP\u2019s office should be open to everybody. I don\u2019t know why, but at the moment some people can\u2019t talk to our local member. There\u2019s no reason why you shouldn\u2019t talk to anybody. Members of parliament don\u2019t have all the answers. If you\u2019re a good member of parliament, you\u2019ll listen to people, and plan for the future of your area.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe always had a meet-the-candidates night, with questions from the floor, at each state election. On the evening you will have your supporters, and other candidates will have theirs, but do these nights change votes? I don\u2019t think so, but they\u2019re part of the democratic process.\u201d<\/p>\n

During our time on the roadside, passing motorists beep their horns and regularly wave at the former state MP.<\/p>\n

\u201cA really big issue for me is getting cars off the road. Most of the people who live down here work outside of the area, so we\u2019ve got a real issue with peak-hour traffic.<\/p>\n

\u201cOne of my biggest issues is train travel. It\u2019s not getting enough cars off the roads, it\u2019s a 50-minute trip to the city, and we haven\u2019t got enough train crossings across the Brisbane River. There\u2019s a plan for an extra crossing at Albert Street which the federal government has offered funding to assist the state to build. This needs to be built.\u201d<\/p>\n

Before wrapping up the interview, I have to know whether all the ALP expects of Briskey is the possibility of \u2018saving the furniture\u2019 for a party that was facing electoral wipeout under former prime minister Julia Gillard. His answer, again, refers to the road.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe greatest barometer down here – the cab drivers – have said they\u2019ve never seen a bigger turnaround. They say people love to talk about Kevin Rudd. A month ago, they wouldn\u2019t even talk about politics. I believe that I have already reduced the margin, and, with the help of Kevin Rudd, I believe that the \u2018underdog\u2019 has a good chance of winning.\u201d<\/p>\n

Next up: Penny reads the campaign signs – Greens candidate for Bowman Penny Allman-Payne<\/a>.\u00a0 <\/i><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/i>Last week: Interview with Palmer United Party candidate<\/a> for Bowman, John Wayne.<\/i><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/i>Coming up: Fernando Alba<\/a> of the 21st Century Australia Party answers my questions.<\/i><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/i>Laming update: Sitting member for Bowman, Andrew Laming MP<\/a>, has emailed me a couple of statements and indicated he may respond to my questions once the election date has been announced.<\/i><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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