ACT politician's alleged 'threatening' behaviour towards former leader dismissed

Complaint by former Canberra Liberals leader Leanne Castley about colleague's alleged 'threatening' behaviour dismissed In short: A report from the ACT Commissioner for Standards has detailed accusations of poor behaviour by both former Canberra Liberals leader Leanne Castley and fellow MLA Chiaka Barry. The commissioner examined Ms Barry's actions and found while they were "somewhat intemperate", he was not satisfied her behaviour involved a breach of the code of conduct. The commissioner's report has been sent to the relevant standing committee, which dismissed the complaint against Ms Barry with no action. The ACT Commissioner for Standards has recommended a complaint filed by former Liberal MLA Leanne Castley into alleged "threatening behaviour" from Chiaka Barry be dismissed. Ms Castley filed the complaint in June, saying Ms Barry had breached the Members of the Legislative Assembly's code of conduct. She alleged Ms Barry said she would "physically come at her", raised her fists and mimicked bashing a table during a meeting with ACT Opposition Leader Mark Parton in May. The meeting had been held to discuss a comment Ms Castley had allegedly made that upset Ms Barry a day earlier. The commissioner, Ken Crispin, described Ms Barry's response to Ms Castley as "somewhat intemperate", but said he was not satisfied her behaviour was not "wholly unreasonable" in the circumstances, or that it involved a breach of the code of conduct. In June, Ms Castley left the Canberra Liberals to sit as an independent, saying there was a "toxic culture" within the party, and alleging she had "experienced bullying, intimidation, lies, and even a threat of physical assault". The next day, Ms Barry hosed down the allegation of threatening behaviour, saying the former leader had misunderstood an "animated discussion" that took place in Mr Parton's office after Ms Castley allegedly "verbally embarrassed" her in the chamber. In a statement, Ms Castley said she was disappointed the commissioner had not interviewed witnesses, but accepted the matter had now been closed. 'She would come after me' In her complaint, which the commissioner received on June 4, Ms Castley said Ms Barry breached the code of conduct, including those paragraphs that stipulated members should "treat each other with courtesy and propriety". The commissioner said he had contacted both Ms Barry and Mr Parton, who provided responses, before completing the investigation and finalising the report recommending the complaint be dismissed. According to the report, Ms Castley said she had been asked to attend the meeting on May 7 in Mr Parton's office, in which she said Ms Barry "raised both her fists and mimicked bashing the table". She said she had been asked there following a comment she had made as she left the chamber on May 6 regarding a bill Ms Barry had spoken on. "I was told by Mark Parton I had upset her," Ms Castley said in the report. She went on to say Ms Barry "then hurled a barrage of accusations at me about being a bad leader and giving her bad portfolios". "She then went on to say that if I ever do this to her again, she would come after me, come at me and physically come at me," Ms Castley said in the report. "At this point I spoke up and asked Mark if this is the reason I was invited here and did I need a support person. "Chiaka stopped yelling and left the room." Ms Castley said she and Mr Parton then went to the shadow cabinet to discuss the daily program, and he asked at its conclusion whether there was any other business to discuss. She said Ms Barry then "spoke up and repeated her threats". "Other members walked out of that meeting believing that she said she would hit me and come for my family, however, I was too upset at this point to remember those exact details but other members who were there told me this," Ms Castley said. Account of 'expletive-laden spray' In her response to the commissioner following Ms Castley's complaint, Ms Barry rejected the allegations. "To the contrary, I believe Ms Castley's conduct on 6 May 2026 was itself inconsistent with the standards of courtesy, propriety and professional conduct expected of members," Ms Barry said, according to the report. In a press conference the day after Ms Castley moved to the crossbench, Ms Barry said the former leader had embarrassed her in public by accusing her of debating the wrong bill in the chamber. "Ms Castley verbally said to me, 'F***, you're debating the wrong bill',"Ms Barry said. "And that was incorrect. She slammed her laptop and walked out of the chamber." In her response to the commissioner's report, Ms Barry said Ms Castley's alleged behaviour was "clearly unparliamentary". Ms Barry said several members of the Legislative Assembly were present and to her understanding witnessed the interaction. Ms Barry said she was "shocked, humiliated and embarrassed". "I felt that Ms Castley had called my competency and the competency of my staff into question," she said. Ms Barry alleged that in the meeting with Mr Parton, she said words to the effect of: "I don't know what I did to make you pick on me. I supported your leadership as best as I could, yet you have marked me as your enemy and continue to attack me for no reason." She said she then added: "If you continue to come at me the way you have, I will have no choice but to come back at you". "I do not deny that the conversation was robust, but it absolutely did not descend into table bashing and unhinged, aggressive gesturing," Ms Barry added. Loading...In his statement to the commissioner, Mr Parton said Ms Barry was "quite upset and the discussion was quite animated". "Ms Barry's voice was raised, but I wouldn't characterise it as her 'shouting at Ms Castley', rather that she was loud and animated,"he said. "I would also suggest that, Ms Barry is loud and animated in most discussions she participates in." Mr Parton said he did not have a memory of Ms Barry thumping the table. "Ms Barry then said ... and I can't remember the exact words, but something like, 'If you come at me, I will come at you'," he said in his response to the commissioner. "I instantly stepped in and indicated that, in my view, those comments could well be taken as a physical threat and Ms Barry immediately qualified that it was not a threat, but rather she was explaining that if Ms Castley continued with this behaviour, Ms Barry would respond accordingly." In his findings, the commissioner said the crucial issue was not what Ms Castley understood Ms Barry's words to mean, but what Ms Barry actually meant. "Mr Parton recalled that Ms Barry immediately explained that her words had not been intended as a threat but as an explanation that if Ms Castley continued to behave aggressively towards her Ms Barry would respond accordingly," the commissioner said. "I am not satisfied that this explanation should be rejected." Dr Crispin said he was not satisfied that Ms Barry had made physical threats towards Ms Castley or her family. "In the present case whilst Ms Barry's words may not have involved a threat of physical violence, they did involve a warning that if she continued to behave aggressively towards her, she would 'come back' at Ms Castley, albiet in an unspecified manner," he said in the report. "Whilst this may have been somewhat intemperate, I am not satisfied that in the circumstances it was wholly unreasonable or that it involved a breach [of the code of conduct]." In a statement, Ms Castley said she was disappointed with the outcome. "While I am disappointed with the way the investigation was undertaken, particularly the failure to interview witnesses or to test claims that were central to the Commissioner's conclusion, I accept that the matter has now been closed,"she said. The commissioner's report was submitted to the Standing Committee on Administration and Procedure Committee, which then dismissed the complaint.