This article is from the source 'guardian' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.

You can find the current article at its original source at http://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/sep/04/troy-buswell-quits-politics-citing-need-to-manage-mental-health-problems

The article has changed 3 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.

Version 0 Version 1
Troy Buswell quits politics citing need to manage mental health problems Troy Buswell quits politics citing need to manage mental health problems
(about 3 hours later)
The disgraced former West Australian treasurer and opposition leader Troy Buswell has quit politics, citing his mental health problems as the main reason.The disgraced former West Australian treasurer and opposition leader Troy Buswell has quit politics, citing his mental health problems as the main reason.
Buswell handed in his resignation and informed the premier, Colin Barnett, on Wednesday.Buswell handed in his resignation and informed the premier, Colin Barnett, on Wednesday.
He quit cabinet after he crashed into parked cars, a pole and the front gate of his Subiaco home when returning from a wedding in the early hours of 23 February.He quit cabinet after he crashed into parked cars, a pole and the front gate of his Subiaco home when returning from a wedding in the early hours of 23 February.
Before Buswell returned to parliament as a backbencher in May, he told reporters he had been diagnosed with bipolar disorder and depression, but refused to answer questions about whether he was drunk at the time of the crash.Before Buswell returned to parliament as a backbencher in May, he told reporters he had been diagnosed with bipolar disorder and depression, but refused to answer questions about whether he was drunk at the time of the crash.
“For some time I have been thinking about my long-term future in politics – would this be my last term or wouldn’t it, and I think that’s a logical question that politicians ask themselves,” Buswell told the paper.“For some time I have been thinking about my long-term future in politics – would this be my last term or wouldn’t it, and I think that’s a logical question that politicians ask themselves,” Buswell told the paper.
“I always remind myself that when I came into the job I said I wasn’t here to be a career politician.“I always remind myself that when I came into the job I said I wasn’t here to be a career politician.
“But things changed in the last six months, and what is obvious to me, now that I am feeling a lot better, is that public life and the way I have to manage the medical condition that I’ve got are just not compatible.“But things changed in the last six months, and what is obvious to me, now that I am feeling a lot better, is that public life and the way I have to manage the medical condition that I’ve got are just not compatible.
“In many ways, regrettably, I feel I’ve lost the passion for the job and the desire. And to continue is just definitely not in my best interest, and I don’t think it’s in the Liberal party or the government’s best interests. And I know for a fact it’s not in my constituents’ best interests.”“In many ways, regrettably, I feel I’ve lost the passion for the job and the desire. And to continue is just definitely not in my best interest, and I don’t think it’s in the Liberal party or the government’s best interests. And I know for a fact it’s not in my constituents’ best interests.”
He again refused to discuss details of the crash, for which he was fined $3,100 and disqualified from driving for one year after admitting 11 traffic offences.He again refused to discuss details of the crash, for which he was fined $3,100 and disqualified from driving for one year after admitting 11 traffic offences.
“Everybody knows that damage was caused to motor vehicles. That’s been investigated thoroughly, I’ve been fined, had my licence suspended, paid for the damage, and as far as I’m concerned that event is done and I have to move on from it.“Everybody knows that damage was caused to motor vehicles. That’s been investigated thoroughly, I’ve been fined, had my licence suspended, paid for the damage, and as far as I’m concerned that event is done and I have to move on from it.
“I’m not proud of that at all, it’s something I just have to accept happened.”“I’m not proud of that at all, it’s something I just have to accept happened.”
His resignation will prompt a byelection in the safe Liberal seat of Vasse, in WA’s south-west, which Buswell has held since 2005.His resignation will prompt a byelection in the safe Liberal seat of Vasse, in WA’s south-west, which Buswell has held since 2005.
In 2008, when he was opposition leader, Buswell admitted he had behaved offensively towards female colleagues, including sniffing the chair of a staffer in 2005.In 2008, when he was opposition leader, Buswell admitted he had behaved offensively towards female colleagues, including sniffing the chair of a staffer in 2005.
Troy Buswell’s incident-packed career
January 2008: Apologises for snapping a Labor staffer’s bra, cuddling up to a fellow MP while drunk in parliament and making sexist remarks to another MP.
April 2008: Denies allegations he sniffed the chair of a Liberal staffer, writhing in mock sexual pleasure. Later that month, breaks down at a press conference after admitting he had.
May 2008: Liberal backbencher Murray Cowper says he was “squirrel-gripped” by Buswell.
October 2009: Called on to resign all portfolios after he admits to accidentally signing a false expenses claim.
November 2009: Second travel allowance mistake uncovered.
April 2010: Admits to an affair with Fremantle Greens MP Adele Carles after she reveals it in a newspaper. Later that month he resigns from cabinet.
February 2011: WA opposition calls for Buswell to be sacked for traffic offences after he was brought back to the front bench in December 2010.
December 2012: Carles accuses Buswell of inappropriate behaviour at a corporate party. Later that month he sues her for defamation.
November 2013: Accused of abusing his power by intervening to get his son a driving test appointment on a day when no regular tests were scheduled.
February 2014: Settles defamation case against Carles. Later that month he crashes his car into several parked cars, a power pole and the front gate of his Subiaco home on his way back from a wedding.
March 2014: Takes a fortnight of leave from cabinet, then resigns after suffering a breakdown.
April 2014: Charged with 11 traffic offences in connection with the February crashes. Later that month he apologises after being fined $3,100 and disqualified from driving for a year.
July 2014: Opposition demands answers about an insurance claim form for Buswell’s crashed ministerial car, which was submitted incomplete by a government bureaucrat. Later that month Barnett says he is dismayed money was offered to a woman whose vehicle was damaged by Buswell in the February crashes. He later agrees to pay for the damage caused to all the cars.
September 2014: Quits politics.