John-Paul Langbroek

John-Paul Langbroek MP
Langbroek in 2021
Shadow Minister for Seniors, Communities and Disability Services Shadow Minister for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Partnership
Incumbent
Assumed office 16 November 2020
Leader	David Crisafulli
Preceded by	Christian Rowan
Shadow Minister for Multicultural Affairs
Incumbent
Assumed office 15 December 2017
Leader	Deb Frecklington David Crisafulli
Preceded by	Steve Minnikin
Shadow cabinet posts (2015-2020) Shadow Minister for Sport and Racing In office 15 December 2017 – 16 November 2020 Leader Tim Nicholls Deb Frecklington Preceded by Jon Krause Succeeded by Tim Mander Shadow Minister for Health and Ambulance Services In office 10 May 2016 – 15 December 2017 Leader Tim Nicholls Deb Frecklington Preceded by Mark McArdle (Health) Jarrod Bleijie (Ambulance Services) Succeeded by Ros Bates Shadow Minister for Commonwealth Games In office 20 February 2015 – 13 August 2019 Leader Lawrence Springborg Tim Nicholls Deb Frecklington Preceded by Tim Mulherin Succeeded by Position abolished Shadow Treasurer of Queensland In office 20 February 2015 – 6 May 2016 Leader Lawrence Springborg Preceded by Curtis Pitt Succeeded by Scott Emerson
Deputy Leader of the Opposition of Queensland Deputy Leader of the Liberal National Party
In office 14 February 2015 – 6 May 2016
Leader	Lawrence Springborg
Preceded by	Tim Mulherin (Opposition) Jeff Seeney (LNP)
Succeeded by	Deb Frecklington
Minister for Education, Training and Employment of Queensland
In office 3 April 2012 – 14 February 2015
Premier	Campbell Newman
Preceded by	Cameron Dick (Education) Stirling Hinchliffe (Employment)
Succeeded by	Kate Jones (Education) Yvette D'Ath (Training) Curtis Pitt (Employment)
Shadow cabinet posts (2011-2012) Shadow Minister for Police, Corrective Services and Emergency Services In office 11 April 2011 – 19 February 2012 Leader Campbell Newman Preceded by Glen Elmes Succeeded by Bill Byrne
Leader of the Opposition of Queensland Leader of the Liberal National Party
In office 2 April 2009 – 22 March 2011
Deputy	Lawrence Springborg
Preceded by	Lawrence Springborg
Succeeded by	Jeff Seeney (Opposition) Campbell Newman (LNP)
Manager of Opposition Business in Queensland
In office 30 September 2008 – 2 April 2009
Leader	Lawrence Springborg
Preceded by	Stuart Copeland
Succeeded by	Jeff Seeney
Shadow cabinet posts (2005-2009) Shadow Minister for Education and Skills In office 12 August 2008 – 2 April 2009 Leader Lawrence Springborg Preceded by Stuart Copeland Succeeded by Bruce Flegg Shadow Minister for Health In office 21 September 2006 – 12 August 2008 Leader Jeff Seeney Lawrence Springborg Preceded by Bruce Flegg Succeeded by Mark McArdle Shadow Minister for Employment and Training In office 8 August 2006 – 21 September 2006 Leader Lawrence Springborg Preceded by Ray Hopper Succeeded by Fiona Simpson Shadow Minister for Public Works and Housing In office 28 September 2005 – 8 August 2006 Leader Lawrence Springborg Preceded by Ray Hopper Succeeded by Terry Rogers
Member of the Queensland Parliament for Surfers Paradise
Incumbent
Assumed office 7 February 2004
Preceded by	Lex Bell
Majority	16.2% (2020)
Personal details
Born	John-Paul Honoré Langbroek (1961-01-31) 31 January 1961 (age 63) Assen, Netherlands
Political party	Liberal National Party
Other political affiliations	Liberal Party
Spouse	Stacey Langbroek
Relations	Kate Langbroek (sister)
Children	3
Residence(s)	Gold Coast, Queensland
Nickname	JP

John-Paul Honoré Langbroek (born 31 January 1961) is an Australian politician who has been a member of the Legislative Assembly of Queensland representing the centre-right Liberal Party and its successor, the centre-right Liberal National Party, in the seat of Surfers Paradise since 2004. He was Leader of the Opposition and parliamentary leader of the LNP from 2009 to 2011—the first person from the Liberal side of the merger to hold the post. He was a minister in the Newman government before its defeat at the 2015 state election.

Early life

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Langbroek was born in Assen in the Netherlands. He and his sister, Melbourne-based media personality Kate Langbroek, grew up as the only two children of Jehovah's Witnesses. His family emigrated to Australia in mid-1961, just months after his birth. The family travelled around rural Queensland where Langbroek Sr worked at various schools.

Early career

A graduate of Sunnybank State High School, he went on to study at the University of Queensland, receiving an honours degree in dental science.^[1] At university he showed no early sign of an interest in politics, describing his student days at the University of Queensland as being "toga parties, Lacoste shirts and university japes".^[2]

He finished his degree in 1983 and departed for London where he met his wife Stacey.

Political career

Langbroek entered politics in 2001 when he stood as the Liberal candidate in the May 2001 by-election for Surfers Paradise. The by-election was triggered by the resignation of the previous member, former National Party Premier Rob Borbidge who had just led the Coalition to a landslide defeat in the general election earlier in 2001. Due to voter anger at being forced to the polls for the second time in three months, the National vote tumbled to eight percent. This left Langbroek far short of the support he needed to overtake Gold Coast councillor and former mayor Lex Bell, who won the seat as an independent. Langbroek stood again in Surfers Paradise at the 2004 state election and won convincingly with Bell being pushed into third place. He has held the seat comfortably ever since, and as of the 2017 election sits on a majority of 19.8 percent, making Surfers Paradise the safest LNP seat in the chamber.

Opposition (2005–09)

As an MP he had served in the opposition shadow ministry for a number of years. He has held various shadow portfolios, including health, public works, mines and energy and immediately before his ascension to the leadership he has served as Shadow Minister for Education and Skills and Shadow Minister for the Arts from 12 August 2008.^[3]

Leader of the opposition (2009–11)

Langbroek was elected leader of the LNP following the 2009 state election after the LNP's first leader, Lawrence Springborg, announced his retirement. Langbroek named Springborg as his deputy.^[4] Langbroek's election marked the first time in 84 years that the non-Labor side in Queensland had been led by someone aligned federally with the Liberals or their predecessors. The Nationals have historically been the stronger non-Labor party in the state, and had been the dominant partner in the non-Labor Coalition from 1925 until the formation of the LNP in 2008.

Polling for much of 2009 and 2010 showed the LNP ahead of Labor on the two-party vote, and Langbroek consistently led incumbent Labor Premier Anna Bligh as preferred premier. However, after Labor's numbers rebounded in the wake of the Queensland floods, Langbroek came under growing pressure from the LNP's organisational wing to stand down.^[5] According to Nine News Queensland's Spencer Jolly, LNP president Bruce McIver was trying to engineer a by-election to get Brisbane Lord Mayor Campbell Newman, also from the Liberal side of the merger, elected to the legislature so Newman could challenge Langbroek for the LNP leadership.^[6]

On 22 March 2011, Newman announced he would be seeking pre-selection for the seat of Ashgrove, and would challenge for the LNP leadership if successful. Later that day, Langbroek and Springborg announced their resignations as leader and deputy leader, respectively.^[7] While a February poll showed the LNP with 55 percent two-party support—enough to make Langbroek premier—internal Coalition polling suggested that under Newman, the LNP would win government "in a canter".^[8] As late as the previous day, Langbroek had insisted that he would not resign, and even demanded that McIver and the rest of the organisational wing either back down from their attempts to push him out or resign themselves. He appeared to have the support of most of the party room as well. However, within hours of Newman's announcement, Langbroek gave way.^[5]

Newman frontbencher (2011–15)

Newman appointed Langbroek Shadow Police Minister in his Shadow Cabinet.^[9]

After the LNP landslide in the 2012 election, Langbroek was made Minister for Education, Training and Employment in the Newman Ministry.

Post Newman (2015–)

Following Newman government's defeat in the 2015 election, Langbroek became Deputy leader of the LNP and Deputy Leader of the Opposition. He left the position after Lawrence Springborg lost the leadership to Tim Nicholls with Deb Frecklington replacing Langbroek in his position as deputy leader.^[10]

He has remained on the opposition frontbench under Nicholls, Frecklington and Crisafulli.

After Nicholls stood down as leader after the 2017 election, Langbroek stood for the LNP leadership again finishing second to Frecklington with 10 votes to her 25, with 3 for Mark Robinson.^[11]

Personal life

Langbroek is married and has three children. Although he has not shown a clear rejection of his parents' religion (Jehovah's Witnesses), he does not discuss the topic at length.^[2] He has expressed the pain of having a relative with motor neurone disease. Describing the disease as having "destroyed his family", causing his 58-year-old brother-in-law to need constant nursing and causing potentially fatal weight loss.^[12]

References

External links

• Official Website
• Liberal National Party Page for John-Paul Langbroek