Rob Pyne's time in Queensland politics

CAIRNS MP ROB PYNE'S TIME IN QUEENSLAND POLITICS:

2015

Jan 31 - the former Cairns councillor is elected as Cairns MP

March 24 - sworn in to parliament as part of minority Labor government, becoming Australia's first quadriplegic MP

April

30 - declares his commitment to Labor amid reports he's considering quitting the party

October

14 - calls for local government corruption inquiry, which state government rejects

2016

January

6 - Pyne airs concerns about impacts government's controversial lockout laws will have on his electorate

25 - quits Labor's left faction after feeling stymied, particularly over lockout laws

27 - backtracks on threat to quit Labor and vows he won't vote against lockout laws

February

3 - poll showing Labor behind LNP on two-party preferred basis credits instability caused by Pyne

15 - he says he'll support lockout laws on moral grounds

23 - insists government ministers have been trying to intimidate him

26 - renews calls for local government inquiry, vowing to be a thorn in his government's side

March

7 - resigns from Labor, arguing he can better serve his electorate from the crossbenches

8 - Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk threatens to call early election if legislation blocked in parliament

PYNE'S MORE COLOURFUL QUOTES

"I have a message for the big end of town: Your unsustainable, unfunded and illogical capital dredge proposal will not fly." - after a dredging proposal for Trinity Inlet in Cairns was quashed, April 2015.

"Between the media, political trolls and apparatchiks I am not sure one can make a big difference. No more social media from me until I can make sense of it." - after briefly quitting social media in April 2015.

"I come back to Cairns and I have a good bath in Dettol and try and clean myself from that process." - his thoughts on "disheartening" party games in Queensland politics, March 2016.