A LATE-NIGHT incident with a female public servant in a Hong Kong bar has led to the resignation of the Australian minister for Cities and Built Environment.

    Liberal party member Jamie Briggs announced at a press conference yesterday he was stepping down from prime minister Malcolm Turnbull’s ministry, saying his behavior hadn’t met ministerial standards.

    Briggs visited Hong Kong at the end of November as part of an international tour of major public transport systems.

    In a statement released yesterday, Briggs said after the official business of his overseas trip was concluded, he, his chief of staff and the public servant went to “a popular and, as it transpired, very crowded bar for drinks.”

    “However in the days following the evening, the public servant concerned raised concerns about the appropriateness of my behavior towards her at the venue,” he said, adding he had directly apologized to her.

    The name of the bar wasn’t revealed in the statement or the press conference, nor any specific details as to what occurred with the female Australian public servant.

    Briggs’ resignation came at the same time as Turnbull’s special minister of state, Mal Brough, stepped down while under investigation as part of a police probe.  

    (SD-Agencies)