Liberal member for Yerrabi James Milligan provided a statement to the Legislative Assembly on Thursday saying that his "constituent list" of email addresses has never been used to promote his business, JM Publishing.

"No emails were sent for the purposes of promoting my business," Mr Milligan said in a statement.

Mr Milligan did not win a seat at the 2020 election, but returned to the Assembly in March following the resignation of former opposition leader Alistair Coe.

An email purportedly sent by Mr Milligan was presented to the chamber, in which Mr Milligan thanked supporters after last year's poll and said he was re-establishing his business.

"As such if you have any projects or referrals that you think may benefit from affordable, efficient, and expert business support, please do not hesitate to put them in touch with JM Publishing," the email said.

In a written statement to the Assembly, Mr Milligan said: "My 'constituent list' has at no time been used for business purposes."

Mr Milligan had earlier referred himself to the Legislative Assembly's Commissioner of Standards, but a motion moved by Speaker Joy Burch means the commissioner will be able to consider the issue even though Mr Milligan was not a member of the Assembly at the time.

An earlier motion moved by Ms Burch compelled Mr Milligan to make a detailed statement to the Assembly and clarify the use of his email list.

Opposition whip Jeremy Hanson decried the motion as a political witch hunt in a testy and complex debate on Thursday.

The ABC had earlier reported Mr Milligan emailed his constituents two weeks after he lost his seat in the October poll.

An opposition spokesman declined to comment when contacted on Friday.

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