Showing posts with label Belinda Neal. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Belinda Neal. Show all posts

Thursday 4 September 2008

Just for the record, how tall/short is "the diminutive Opposition leader"?

The Australian's Online political editor, Samantha Maiden, reported that Labor MP Belinda Neal (who has been in the hot seat in relation to events that either did or did not take place at a restaurant on the NSW Central Coast) and the Leader of the Opposition, Brendan Nelson, engaged in a not so friendly exchange of words last Thursday during a Qantas flight between Canberra and Sydney.

Maiden wrote:

When the flight landed, Dr Nelson attempted to help Ms Neal with her bags, prompting the furious Labor MP to demand to know when he was going to apologise for the remarks. [Comment: Neal claims Nelson had previously made claims that she (Neal) was an "ugly bully".]

The clash was witnessed by the packed plane and deputy Liberal leader Julie Bishop, who intervened. She later told colleagues Ms Neal attempted to physically intimidate the diminutive Opposition leader.

Monday 16 June 2008

Show and tell in Federal Parliament?

Will the flood gates open in Australia's Federal Parliament today when Belinda Neal, the Member for Robertson, is expected to be in Parliament for the first time since the Iguanas nightclub incident?

The Sydney Morning Herald reports that a spokesman for Federal Opposition leader Brendan Nelson said, "We expect Mr Rudd to call on Belinda Neal to go into the chamber and explain what happened."

According to the
Herald, Nelson is set to exploit the MP-behaving-badly issue and press Mr Rudd to require Ms Neal to explain to Parliament her side of the story over the fracas with staff at the Gosford nightclub.

Comment:
MPs behaving badly? Brendan Nelson should be very careful. His side of the House has more than its fair share of MPs whose unacceptable behaviour could be highlighted.