South Australia's former liberal leader David Speirs is expected to formally quit parliament this week

ABC NEWS (Australia)

South Australia's former liberal leader David Speirs is expected to formally quit parliament this week - after he was arrested and charged with drug offences.

Transcript

00:00Well, we know that the former Liberal leader David Spears will be able to formally resign

00:06from South Australia's Parliament as soon as today, after he previously flagged his

00:11intention to do so earlier this month.

00:13Now, the 39-year-old announced that he planned to quit Parliament and suspend his Liberal

00:18Party membership in a video he posted to his social media on the 5th of October.

00:23In that same video, he also revealed that police had raided his home and arrested him,

00:28when police later confirmed that he had been charged with two counts of supplying a controlled

00:33substance.

00:34And this all came to light after a video was published by News Corp last month, which was

00:39reportedly filmed inside Mr Spears' home.

00:42He has strenuously denied any wrongdoing and is set to go before a magistrate in a month's

00:47time.

00:48According to South Australia's Constitution Act, a member of Parliament must formally

00:52resign to the Speaker of the House in order for their seat to then become vacant.

00:58Parliament resumes sitting this morning, which means today is the first day that Mr

01:02Spears can resign formally since making his announcement.

01:06Now, we don't know if that will happen in person or through a letter, but he has previously

01:11said that he intends to do so in the next sitting week.

01:14And the Opposition Leader, Vincent Tarsier, also said on Saturday that he expects this

01:18to happen in the coming days.

01:20Now, Mr Spears' resignation will trigger a by-election in his southern suburb seat of

01:25Black.

01:26Once he has officially left Parliament, the Speaker must issue a writ for a by-election,

01:31which must be issued 28 days before the date fixed for polling.

01:35So that by-election is unlikely to happen until mid-November at the earliest.

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