Campbell Newman’s Liberal National Party government suffered an 18.6 per cent swing against it at Saturday’s by-election in the Brisbane-based seat of Stafford.

Labor’s Anthony Lynham was always expected to win, but Griffith University political analyst Paul Williams says the LNP must have been shocked by the scale of the defeat.

He says it was even worse than the 17 per cent swing against the LNP at February’s Redcliffe by-election, which followed revelations about the dodgy business dealings of disgraced former MP Scott Driscoll.

“I see the LNP sneaking back home, but with Campbell Newman himself having been defeated,’’ Dr Williams told the ABC.

“They’ll have to have a leadership succession plan in place now, and not have a public bloodbath in March or April.’’

Dr Williams said he expected a statewide swing of 10 to 12 per cent against the LNP at the next election.

He said it wouldn’t be enough to make the LNP a one-term government, but it defied logic that Mr Newman could hang onto his Brisbane seat of Ashgrove.

“Given we’ve seen double-digit swings ... in the greater Brisbane area, the arithmetic just doesn’t add up for someone to hold a seat that’s on less than six per cent,’’ he said.

The loss in Stafford is a hit for Campbell Newman, who will today retreat from some of the Government’s most controversial decisions following the LNP’s weekend annihilation in the Stafford by-election.

The Courier-Mail can reveal Cabinet will today discuss scrapping several of the most contentious elements of reforms to Queensland’s corruption watchdog and tough anti-bikie legislation.

The Queensland Premier spent yesterday briefing senior LNP MPs on his plans after the Government suffered a massive 18.6 per cent swing against it in Stafford.

It is understood the Government will reintroduce a bipartisan appointments process for the chair of the newly named Crime and Corruption Commission.

The controversial decision by Attorney-General Jarrod Bleijie to remove the bipartisan parliamentary committee’s role in appointments was heavily condemned by former corruption inquiry head Tony Fitzgerald in one of his numerous salvos at the Newman Government.

Cabinet will also discuss removing some of the harshest aspects of the criminal motorcycle gang legislation that Mr Newman has repeatedly insisted he does not like but were an important weapon in the war against rebel bikies.

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It is also understood Cabinet members have been assured there will be no reshuffle and each will fight on to the election and be tasked with better selling the Government’s achievements.

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