A former state premier has been forced to apologise to parliament for a second time after being found guilty of contempt in a rare ruling.
Queensland Opposition Leader Steven Miles issued an unreserved apology after it was found he misled the state’s parliament.
Mr Miles told parliament in February 2025 that Deputy Premier Jarrod Bleijie failed to declare a conflict of interest over a Sunshine Coast property.
The Labor leader accused Mr Bleijie of not disclosing the Kawana Waters property was adjacent to a proposed extension to a railway line.
But Mr Bleijie said the property had been declared on his register of interests since 2021, forcing Mr Miles to back down.
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Mr Miles first apologised to parliament in April 2025 over the claim.
That wasn’t enough for Mr Bleijie, who referred Mr Miles to the parliamentary Ethics Committee, along with deputy opposition leader Cameron Dick and industrial relations spokesperson Grace Grace.
While no findings were made against Mr Dick or Ms Grace, the committee found Mr Miles in contempt for misleading the house, ruling his first apology was equivocal.
It forced him into a second apology when the report was tabled in parliament on Thursday.
“I accept the findings of the report. I offer my unreserved and sincere, unequivocal apology to the house,” Mr Miles said.
Mr Bleijie immediately went on the attack, accusing the former premier of not being fit to continue to serve as opposition leader.
“Steven Miles has lied to parliament deliberately,” he said in reply.
Premier David Crisafulli also weighed in, telling parliament it was “extraordinary” and a “historic and sad day in Queensland’s political history”.
It came after the LNP and Labor battled furiously over integrity issues ahead of a crucial by-election on Saturday in the northern Brisbane seat of Stafford.
Labor has referred Olympics Minister Tim Mander and Families and Child Safety Minister Amanda Camm to the Crime and Corruption Commission over whether they properly declared and managed conflicts of interest arising from a personal relationship.
