Independent member for Nicklin Peter Wellington has been nominated as Speaker by Queensland's new Labor government. Credit:Harrison Saragossi Mr Wellington said he was committed to ending confrontation and promoting dialogue. "This is historic in my view, as an independent," he said. "It will an honour and a privilege." Mr Wellington said he would allow TV cameras in the house again, which was banned by previous Speaker Fiona Simpson. He said he would be fair to all members and he expected they would follow the standing orders.

"We all know the rules," Mr Wellington said. "With the numbers so tight, everyone will be on the best behaviour." Opposition Leader Lawrence Springborg said he supported the appointment in-principle, but there were a number of "issues" that he said needed to be resolved. However Mr Springborg would not say what those were when he spoke to the media on Friday afternoon. "I'm not going to get into ventilating them today. I don't want to be playing that out publicly, particularly at this stage because I think that really does stymie and potentially kills the potential for good will," he said. "They're issues about the way the parliament can and should operate more effectively to ensure it can bring a greater degree of accountabolity for Queenslanders and also the scrutiny that Queenslanders expect can be effectively delivered in the parliament."

Griffith University political scientist Paul Williams said the placement of an independent member in the Speaker's chair was a "great opportunity" for the parliament. "The parliament will be very evenly divided. You've got a non-partisan Speaker and this should be one of the best parliaments we've seen in decades," Dr Williams said. "It's a statement of confidence in Peter Wellington. It underscores most people's belief in his integrity and reputation for impartiality. It's a great boon for the parliament to have a genuinely independent speaker." "Observers have often said the Borbidge parliament was quite a good one, with some exceptions. But it was good in terms of real scrutiny and debate. The first six months of the Beattie government was also good when they didn't have a majority back in '98. "People don't have to fear a hung parliament if it's handled properly."

Dr Lorann Downer, a University of Queensland political lecturer who worked in the media unit for the Beattie and Bligh governments, also backed Mr Wellington's appointment. "He conducts businesses in a very straight up-and-down way," she said. "He's a very reasonable man and he was open to discussion. That's the kind of Speaker I think he would be." "I think minority government is more challenging than majority government of course, but the Beattie government demonstrated in '98 that minority government can work well. People have to demonstrate good will, be consultative and deliver for voters. "This is a decision voters have made. MPs have to respect that." The Speaker's casting vote will come in to play regularly, something that didn't need to occur when previous governments had one of their own in the chair.