Senior bureaucrat John Lee resigns for family reasons, moving back to Sydney

Queensland’s most outspoken – and at times controversial – senior bureaucrat John Lee, who played a key role in the Palaszczuk government’s re-election in 2020, has resigned.

Queensland’s most outspoken – and at times controversial – senior bureaucrat, John Lee, has resigned for family reasons and will move back to Sydney.

The former senior NSW bureaucrat was credited – when he was a consultant to government – with playing a significant role in the Palaszczuk administration’s pre-election strategy in 2020 on Covid and major events such as the Brisbane AFL grand final.

Mr Lee, who has previously also been chief executive of two NRL clubs, was appointed director-general of tourism and sport after the 2020 election.

Senior bureaucrat John Lee has resigned for family reasons and will move back to Sydney. Picture: Supplied

He told Tourism Minister Stirling Hinchliffe and staff of his decision on Friday.

Mr Lee moved from Sydney in 2018.

Even before his appointment as a director-general, he was regarded as a maverick and a disrupter and very much part of Ms Palaszczuk’s inner circle.

It is likely he will continue to play a role in planning for the 2032 Olympics, but it is unclear what that looks like.

Mr Lee told staff it was time to go back to Sydney to be with his wife and three children: “I’m very proud of what we’ve achieved, especially around major sport and tapping into tourism markets post-Covid.”

John Lee when he was CEO of the Sydney Roosters CEO in 2016. Picture: Calum Robertson

He later told the Courier Mail: “It’s bittersweet because we’ve done so much but there’s so much more to do with the Olympics pipeline around infrastructure and venues. Queensland and Brisbane in particular is about to grow up big time and I’m seeing that unfold before my very eyes. But it’s the right time. My kids need me more than ever and I miss them a lot.’’

Mr Lee was not your typical director-general, the person who heads a government department. He was prepared to make tough decisions that were not always popular, or in line with existing policy.

This approach polarised him within the government and public sector.

John Lee, pictured with Sam Burgess, during his tenure at South Sydney Rabbitohs boss. Picture: Mark Evans

Mr Lee was blamed by the premier’s department for allowing the wives and girlfriends of footy players to come to fly to Brisbane on a special charter with a special exemption at the height of the pandemic.

His relationship with Ms Palaszczuk cooled at that point, but Labor sources say he has continued to enjoy a “positive and fruitful’’ relationship with his Minister, Stirling Hinchliffe.

Mr Lee will leave his role in mid-September.