Qld ministers Tim Mander and Amanda Camm duck questions about integrity advice on early relationship
Facing questions about the rekindled romance, two Queensland ministers have refused to say whether they spoke to the state’s integrity watchdog about a previous iteration of the relationship when they are first sworn into their roles in late 2024.
Sports Minister Tim Mander also insisted that neither he nor his cabinet colleague, Minister for Families, Seniors and Disability Services Amanda Camm, should deal with the issue., They had no role in decisions regarding projects among each other’s voters and were not romantically involved in their first months in power.
The relationship has come into public debate in recent weeks after the pair revealed to their cabinet colleagues that they had bought a joint property, amid reports about Mander’s living arrangements and concerns raised by his former sister-in-law.
Both Mander and Camm have largely avoided media conferences in Brisbane since then, but addressed reporters separately in Brisbane late on Wednesday after further news was received. funding for projects in each of its constituencies.
Labour’s shadow treasurer Shannon Fentiman held her own media conference earlier in the day, urging the pair to share the Integrity Commissioner’s advice on their relationship. Like Camm did. For an unrelated topic in 2021.
Prime Minister David Crisafulli this week defended the actions of the pair, who “conducted themselves as they should”. He said that if anyone thinks otherwise, they should forward the issue to the relevant authorities.
Under Ministry Code of Conduct In this system, where people in the cabinet are held accountable, ministers are personally responsible for identifying and managing conflicts of interest in line with the advice of the commissioner.
This is required within one month of being sworn into office and whenever there are any changes in circumstances. Mander told reporters on Wednesday that he met with the commissioner after taking office as minister.
“HE [Integrity Commissioner Linda Waugh] The Ministry asked a series of questions to remind us of our responsibilities in the Code of Conduct and I had nothing to declare,” Mander said.
Both he and Camm said on Sunday that they were in a relationship from June 2023 to May 2024 and that they “reconnected” in June 2025 after Mander separated from his wife in April of that year, at which point the pair made the necessary disclosures.
Mander refused to say in his initial meetings with Waugh in November 2024, when asked whether the then-dormant relationship had the potential or perception to be considered a conflict of interest and whether he had sought such advice.
“I will go back to my discussion with the Integrity Commissioner at my first meeting. I discussed a number of issues and he concluded that there was no conflict of interest,” he said.
Mander said he would not release the commissioner’s written recommendation because it could involve confidential and unrelated matters.
The highlight, he said, was the conflict of interest management plan signed by him and Crisafulli on July 14, which details how the restarted relationship will be managed.
This document, shown to the media, acknowledges that Mander, as minister and cabinet member, could be perceived as acting to benefit Camm.
He needs to advise Crisafulli to address this issue and seek advice from Waugh on the progress of their relationship, any matters that could materially affect Camm or relevant matters arising in cabinet.
Mander also needs to avoid being a member of the same cabinet committees as Camm.
Regarding almost $1 million in funding in last year’s budget for community sports projects in Camm’s Whitsunday constituency, Mander said these were election promises from the LNP and he had no role in approving them.
Mander said he had also not discussed with Camm the move to sail to the Whitsundays in the 2032 Olympics.
“Did I do something wrong? I did some wrong to my family, I regret it and I don’t want to upset them any more,” he said.
“But in terms of my obligations as a minister, I did everything in accordance with the Ministerial Code of Conduct and ensured that I complied with it every step of the way.”
Speaking less than an hour after Mander on the other side of the Brisbane CBD, Camm also refused to discuss the election announcements with Mander, whose Everton seat received $3.1 million in funding from Camm’s department for the Dickson Men’s Shed.
He reflected on the personal distress he and Mander’s family and friends had experienced and apologized for any pain he had caused.
Camm confirmed that he, too, had a conflict of interest management plan and also refused to say whether he had spoken to Waugh about the earlier iteration of the relationship when he was sworn in as minister.
Asked why Queenslanders should believe the timeline provided by the couple, he said: “Because it’s real.”
At a press conference earlier on Wednesday, Deputy Prime Minister Jarrod Bleijie also called on former Labor ministers Mark Bailey and Meaghan Scanlon to issue honesty advice about their relationship, which has since ended.
Bleijie also suggested former treasurer Cameron Dick should explain his advice about “his wife and the money he earned while employed by the government to do legal work.”
“If Labor wants to go there then parliament will meet next week and bring it up,” he said.
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Matt Dennien is a reporter for the Brisbane Times covering state politics, parliament and the public sector. He previously worked for newspapers in Tasmania and Brisbane community radio station 4ZZZ. Contact him securely on Signal @mattdennien.15Connect via email.
