I should have released info sooner: Newman


AAP

Queensland’s would-be premier Campbell Newman says he regrets waiting so long to release his financial affairs after more than a month of pressure.

The Liberal National Party (LNP) leader has been refusing to fully disclose his financial interests since early September.

The pressure intensified over the past month with revelations of companies he and his wife were linked to, but had not been declared to Brisbane City Council while he was lord mayor.

The government last week referred the issue to the Crime and Misconduct Commission (CMC) to check whether the former lord mayor had breached the City of Brisbane Act.

Mr Newman has denied he has done anything wrong, saying the rules for council and state government disclosure are different.

He released legal advice on Monday supporting his view, and calling the CMC complaints “baseless”.

It came as Mr Newman finally released two declarations of interest for himself and wife Lisa normally filled out by MPs and their spouses.

Both list additional information, including a previously undisclosed company, Mitzi Corporation, on Mrs Newman’s form.

Mr Newman said he wished he had released the information earlier despite arguing in the past he did not need to as he was only the Ashgrove candidate, not an MP.

“Perhaps yes,” he told reporters in Brisbane when asked if he wished he’d moved earlier.

“And I apologise to Queenslanders for that.”

He said the details on the latest forms were now complete, with nothing else left to disclose.

“I sat down and did a lot of work on this over the weekend and the last few days to make sure that I got this right,” he said.

“… I certainly acknowledge today that the state regime has a higher bar (than council) and now I have complied with that higher bar.”

Mr Newman said he and his wife had considered giving away some of their interests in response to government attacks but had decided not to.

“There are some significant legal and financial issues for our families if we actually do that… that’s the legal and accounting advice,” he said.

Mr Newman called on government ministers to now release their spouse’s details, as he had.

“The Labor party really need to start looking in their own back yard in terms of their openness and transparency because they haven’t declared a whole lot of stuff,” he said.

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