This afternoon, Local Government Minister Ann Leahy said Thompson had “agreed to be suspended” for a year on full pay.
“The premier made it clear Mr Thompson’s position was untenable and I want to thank Mr Thompson for recognising this situation,” she said.
“This result is a win for the residents of Townsville who deserve stability and a functioning local government.
“The people of Townsville spoke loud and clear and we have listened and we have acted.”
9news.com.au has contacted Thompson for comment about his suspension.
Doubts about Thompson’s military service arose around Anzac Day when photos showed him wearing his father’s medals and he couldn’t recall his service number.
He had claimed to have served in three army squadrons over five years in the lead-up to council elections earlier in the year.
In May, he told A Current Affair he had requested his documents from the Department of Defence and they showed he served for two years in one squadron as a reservist, largely in the catering corps.
“I firmly believe up until I received this report that I’d served five years,” he said.
“I actually thought it was ’89 that I joined when I got my report, I realised that it was ’91.”
The independent body in charge of council behaviour was concerned by the exaggeration of Thompson’s military history and referred the matter to the Crime and Corruption Commission, prompting the then-Labor government to try to find ways to remove him.
“I’ve been absolutely consistent that I thought the best thing in Townsville’s interests would be for (Thompson) to stand aside,” then-premier Steven Miles said before last month’s election.
“He has consistently refused to do so.”
Thompson at the time claimed the premier had “no justifiable cause” to stand him down and accused Miles of trying to “undermine the democratic process” to win favour ahead of the election.
Leahy said her Liberal National Party government had achieved in two-and-a-half weeks what “Labor failed for nearly 250 days”.