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Stuart Robert formally resigns from parliament after Albanese criticism
Coalition MP Stuart Robert has formally resigned from parliament, a day after he was strongly criticised from the prime minister for not doing so.
Robert announced his resignation on May 6 and has not returned to parliament since then.
But because he had not formally submitted a letter of resignation, he continued to collect a salary and prevented the scheduling of a by-election.
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Yesterday Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said Robert's lack of a resignation was "completely unacceptable".
"He said that he's resigning but he hasn't resigned, so no date can be set for the by-election, but he's not turning up to parliament," Albanese said.
"That is not business as usual.
"Scott Morrison has foreshadowed leaving at some stage, but he turns up to parliament most of the time."
Today, Speaker of the House Milton Dick received Robert's resignation letter.
"The Speaker is now considering possible dates for the by-election for the electoral division of Fadden, Queensland and will make an announcement in due course," a statement from Dick read.
Robert said he was leaving politics to spend more time with his family.
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Robert represented the seat of Fadden on Queensland's Gold Coast.
Albanese was not bullish when asked about Labor's chances of picking up the now-empty seat.
"Fadden is, of course, a very safe Liberal Party seat," Albanese said.
"So our expectations would be realistic there. We haven't made a decision about what we will do in Fadden."
Robert had a tumultuous time as a minister in the previous government, copping much of the blame for the robodebt debacle.
He also attracted criticism for racking up a $38,000 bill for home internet charges, which was paid for by the taxpayers.
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