Gerard Rennick will “stir the pot” in politics after defecting from the Liberal National Party to sit as an independent.

The renegade Queensland senator who sits with the Liberals says he can accomplish more from the cross bench after becoming a pariah within the party.

Senator Rennick became known for his stance against vaccine mandates during the pandemic and withheld his vote in protest when the coalition was in power, which angered many within the party.

While he does not regret his stance, he says it pigeonholed him and stripped the focus from the other issues he went into parliament to pursue.

“I want to stir the pot and get off the whole of vaccine s***, I didn’t intend to become a cheerleader for the vaccine stuff,” he told AAP on Monday after his defection.

An internal email to LNP members from president Lawrence Spingborg said the party had been informed of the senator’s decision.

“People make their own decisions for their own reasons,” he said.

“Our hardworking team will not be distracted from focusing on the priorities of Queenslanders.”

Senator Rennick will push for the tax-free threshold to be raised to $40,000.

“It’s stupid to tax people below the cost of living,” he said.

Senator Rennick wants childcare subsidies to be paid directly to families to ensure more flexibility for people like shift workers.

He will also push to scrap a generous defined benefits scheme for retired public servants.

Change could not be sparked from within the major parties, he said, adding he only decided in the past fortnight to quit the LNP.

“You go to Canberra, you’re not doing anything,” he said.

“If I stayed in the party, I couldn’t push these ideas, this way I can generate a conversation on the issues.”

The Queensland senator was kicked off the LNP’s federal election ticket in July and his appeals were rejected.

“I don’t want to die wondering and I want to go out having a crack,” he said.

He said he initially considered running for an internal party position such as president but decided personality politics was not for him.

How much social media support would translate into votes would be interesting, although he was not expecting that to be a lot, he said.

An election is due by May 2025.

Senator Rennick said he would use the remaining parliament sitting weeks to introduce private legislation and refer issues to inquiries to get his ideas on the agenda.

He is set to register a new political party.

By Dominic Giannini and Caitlin Powell in Canberra