Get all your news in one place.
100's of premium titles.
One app.
Start reading
AAP
AAP
Politics
Andrew Stafford

Not just friends: ministerial affair raises queries

It's been revealed Tim Mander is in a relationship with a fellow state minister. (Darren England/AAP PHOTOS)

Questions have been raised over the timing of a relationship between two government ministers, with the opposition likening them to a couple in a popular sitcom. 

It has been revealed that Queensland's minister for Olympics and Paralympics, Tim Mander, and Amanda Camm, the minister for child safety and prevention of domestic and family violence, are in a relationship.

Both ministers were forced to issue statements on Sunday after correspondence between Mr Mander's sister-in-law and the premier's office, seen by AAP, was exposed.

They claimed that their relationship began in June 2023, when both were married, and ended in May 2024 before later resuming. 

minister
Amanda Camm is the other minister named in the relationship. (Darren England/AAP PHOTOS)

They officially disclosed their status to cabinet on July 14, 2025.

That was two weeks after Mr Mander's sister-in-law wrote to the premier, when she claimed he had left his wife 10 weeks before, after 44 years of marriage.

Under the code of conduct, ministers must declare any personal relationships and associated conflicts of interest within a month of being sworn in, or as soon as their situation changes.

Ms Mander's sister-in-law also claimed he had admitted the affair went back at least two years earlier.

She asked whether Government House or other public resources had been used to facilitate the relationship, noting that Mr Mander had relocated to Parliament House after leaving his wife.

In his statement, Mr Mander said he had immediately sought advice from the Integrity Commissioner and the Clerk of the Parliament and made all the necessary declarations in line with the Ministerial Code of Conduct.

Deputy opposition leader Cameron Dick invoked the 1990s sitcom Friends on Tuesday, referring to the decade's most famous on again/off again screen couple Ross and Rachel.

He said Premier David Crisafulli "wants Queenslanders to believe that Tim Mander and Amanda Camm are the Ross and Rachel of his government''.

"No one is buying any of this. This isn't an episode of Friends."

He said the relationship raised concerns about the proper exercise of ministerial duties, calling on the premier to release the integrity advice he received and for the ministers to face the media.

ministers
Cameron Dick says there's questions over how a personal relationship intersected with public duties. (Jono Searle/AAP PHOTOS)

"It's got nothing to do with their personal relationship, it's got everything to do with how their personal relationship intersects with their public duties," he said.

Questions have been raised over the timing of a decision by Mr Mander to relocate 2032 Olympic sailing events from Brisbane's bayside to the Whitsunday Islands, in Ms Camm's central Queensland electorate.

In a press conference on Sunday, Mr Crisafulli said he only became aware of the relationship when it was formally declared.

He said both ministers told him they had complied with their obligations, encouraging anyone with evidence of an earlier relationship to report any conflict of interest concerns to the Crime and Misconduct Commission.

Sign up to read this article
Read news from 100's of titles, curated specifically for you.
Already a member? Sign in here
Related Stories
Top stories on inkl right now
One subscription that gives you access to news from hundreds of sites
Already a member? Sign in here
Our Picks
Fourteen days free
Download the app
One app. One membership.
100+ trusted global sources.