Two Liberal MPs are frontrunners for deputy premier job as Vickie Chapman says she won’t keep ministerial salary

Two MPs are firming up as Steven Marshall’s second-in-command – as Vickie Chapman says she won’t accept a ministerial salary or entitlements while she stands down as AG.

Vickie Chapman will remain a member of Cabinet and will not be paid a ministerial wage, Premier Steven Marshall says, after she steps aside as Attorney-General on Tuesday.

It comes as two conservative Liberal ministers emerge as frontrunners to become the state’s new deputy premier – following Ms Chapman’s decision to stand down from the role amid an ombudsman investigation into her conduct.

The besieged MP will not attend Cabinet meetings, nor retain her staff or chauffeured car – and Premier Steven Marshall this morning said she would not be paid a full ministerial wage of $352,056 a year but be paid like any other backbencher as the MP for Bragg.

“Ms Chapman will not be retaining any ministerial entitlements during this period,” a government spokesman said.

Instead, she will keep only the equivalent of a backbencher’s salary of $201,175.

A government spokesperson on Monday told The Advertiser Ms Chapman was, as a continuing member of cabinet, entitled to a ministerial salary of $350,000 but she would not be retaining her ministerial entitlements.

Instead, she would keep a backbencher’s salary of $201,175.

The spokesperson said she would either be giving the remaining $150,000 back to Treasury or she would donate it to charities however she was still working through the details of the move.

The Advertiser has asked which statement from the government is correct - that she will be paid the additional money, which she will then hand back or donate to charity, or whether she will not be paid it at all.

The Opposition says this is not good enough and again called for Ms Chapman’s resignation.

In a statement on Monday morning, Ms Chapman said it was appropriate for her to step aside for the duration of the ombudsman inquiry as “this is the precedent set by former Attorney-General Atkinson”.

Former Labor AG Michael Atkinson resigned from cabinet in 2003 and was paid a backbencher wage while police investigated allegations he was involved in an inducements scandal. He was reinstated as attorney general two months later after a key government adviser was charged over the legal scandal.

Vickie Chapman arrives at the State Administration Centre on Monday. Picture: Brenton Edwards

Former Speaker Josh Teague will be SA’s new Attorney-General. Picture: NCA NewsWire/Brenton Edwards

Meanwhile, Environment Minister David Speirs and Energy Minister Dan van Holst Pellekaan are considered frontrunners to become deputy premier.

Mr Speirs told The Advertiser: “At this stage, I intend to nominate for deputy leader.”

Senior Liberals said Premier Steven Marshall was likely to forge a compromise candidate rather than face a potentially messy ballot of lower house Liberals next Monday, ahead of parliament’s next sitting.

Dan van Holst Pellekaan. Picture: Keryn Stevens

Mr Speirs and Mr van Holst Pellekaan are considered conservative but not aligned to the dominant Right faction spearheaded by federal Liberal MP Tony Pasin.

The need to promote a conservative for Cabinet factional balance is said to have put them ahead of the other major contender, Education Minister John Gardner, a leading Moderate.

Asked whether he would nominate for the Liberal deputy leadership, Education Minister John Gardner said: “I’ll listen to colleagues and make a decision in due course.”

Mr Speirs is considered very likely to put his hand up for the deputy’s job and is understood to have started canvassing the views of colleagues.

Former speaker Josh Teague, a barrister before entering politics, will be installed into the ministry on Tuesday and will become acting Attorney-General, leaving the door open for Ms Chapman’s return if she is cleared by an Ombudsman’s investigation.

“We can have 15 Cabinet ministers. I expect Vickie would return to Cabinet once the issue with the Ombudsman has been cleared up,” Mr Marshall said.

Environment Minister David Speirs. Picture Dean Martin

John Gardner. Picture: Mark Brake

Asked if Ms Chapman could return as deputy Liberal leader, Mr Marshall said once the lower house party room had elected a new deputy he doubted there would be an opportunity to revisit that.

Opposition Leader Peter Malinauskas accused the government of being “in absolute internal chaos and paralysis” because there was “no real clarity of what Steven Marshall’s plan is here”.

Treasurer Rob Lucas has offered extra funding, if needed for the investigation, to the Ombudsman’s office.

The Advertiser on Monday exclusively revealed Ms Chapman would stand down as Deputy Premier and step aside from ministerial roles following the conflict of interest scandal over her rejection in August of a Kangaroo Island port.

In a statement to The Advertiser, Ms Chapman insisted she was not resigning from cabinet but standing aside to allow the Ombudsman – whose office is funded by her Attorney-General’s Department – to appropriately conduct an independent investigation into whether she had a conflict of interest or had misled parliament.

A parliamentary inquiry into Ms Chapman’s conduct on Thursday found she had a conflict of interest in refusing the KI seaport proposal, and that she had misled parliament about the mooted development.

The lower house will on November 30 consider the inquiry’s recommendations to suspend Ms Chapman from parliament for nine days and force her to apologise.

The inquiry committee also referred the matter to the state ombudsman on Thursday.

Ombudsman Wayne Lines declined to comment on Monday, saying it would be inappropriate to answer questions on the matter at this point because “an investigation under the Ombudsman Act has to be conducted in private”.

Kangaroo Island Mayor, and former Liberal MP, Michael Pengilly on Monday said he would “consider the Ombudsman’s request (to aid the inquiry) if indeed it happened”.

Mr Pengilly’s KI property and his friendship with Ms Chapman came under a spotlight during the parliamentary inquiry.

Former Kangaroo Island Plantation Timbers executive Keith Lamb, who was a witness during the parliamentary investigation, said he would provide evidence to the Ombudsman’s probe should it be requested of him.

“I’m fully prepared to co-operate with the Ombudsman but I haven’t heard from him,” he said.

Another former KIPT executive Peter Lockett also declined to comment.