LNP candidate for Kennedy Frank Beveridge is taking the fight directly to Bob Katter as the election enters its closing stages saying the KAP leader has done little for the region.
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"If you vote Liberal or Labor you'll vote for someone who's contributing around table and someone making decisions," Mr Beveridge said.
"The word on the street is there is a need for change out there and there's a movement on the ground, it is time."
However Mr Beveridge said he needed the help of Labor voters to preference him against the party ticket to get over the line.
"The Greens vote will go to Labor and the Labor vote will go to Bob (Katter)," he said.
"If we were a Liberal seat or if we were a Labor seat we'd be well looked after, unfortunately we see hundreds of millions bypassing us to Townsville, Cape York and other places."
Mr Beveridge said the region which contributes $220 billion to the Australian economy was being neglected under Mr Katter.
"There's no better example than Mount Isa which carries so much weight for the nation yet the airfares are the most expensive in Australia," he said.
"Do you really think if this was a Liberal or a Labor seat this would be tolerated? No way in the world."
Mr Beveridge said that if Mr Katter was the "big player" he claimed to be, he would have fixed air fares 10 years ago.
"At the moment we've got one of the best commentators in Australia, so we're getting constant commentary on how bad we're doing but I don't want to be seen as watching the footy game from the sidelines," he said.
Mr Beveridge said Mr Katter had two opportunities with the balance of power but he could not see any evidence of what he had achieved in that time and he rejected Mr Katter's claim he was responsible for the $2 billion to the cattle industry after the February floods.
"No way in the world, it was decided long before that, the mayors were a very strong group and they know how to open doors in Canberra," he said.
"Bob may have played some small part but to say he was a major player was completely ridiculous."
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Derek Barry
Editor of the North West Star Mount Isa since January 2016. Prior to that, an editor at several regional southern Queensland newspapers. Passionate about telling local stories. Comes with a strange accent to due an Irish accident of birth.
Editor of the North West Star Mount Isa since January 2016. Prior to that, an editor at several regional southern Queensland newspapers. Passionate about telling local stories. Comes with a strange accent to due an Irish accident of birth.
