After the decisions of a Townsville magistrate on Thursday to grant bail to the 13 offenders,Miles described the move as a “media stunt” and suggested the city was being “held to ransom by rogue courts and rogue justices”.
But speaking to reporters on Sunday,Dick – a senior figure in Labor’s Right faction – sought to distance himself from Miles’ comments by striking a more “carefully chosen” tone to that of the deputy premier,who leads the dominant Left faction.
“I understand the concerns Queenslanders have about crime. I get it. Everyone in our government gets it – from the premier[Annastacia Palaszczuk] through the ministry,through our backbench – that’s why we are taking strong action,” Dick said.
“But as a former attorney-general,I need to choose my words carefully,and I need to be careful about what I say.”
Dick,who held the top legal position during the Bligh government,was not drawn on whether he thought Miles had gone too far,but he cited appeals,which are already underway,against the magistrate’s decisions.
“I’m not going to say anything that’s going to potentially impact the prospects of appeal as a result of those decisions,” said Dick,who is among a handful of Labor MPs viewed aspotential leaderspost-Palaszczuk.