Adrian Pederick resigns as government whip in ‘abundance of caution’ over travel expenses claims
Premier Steven Marshall has accepted the resignation of Adrian Pederick from his role of Government Whip as concerns about a controversial travel allowance continue.
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Premier Steven Marshall has accepted the resignation of Adrian Pederick from his role of Government Whip as concerns about a controversial travel allowance continue.
Mr Marshall confirmed Mr Pederick’s resignation on Thursday morning.
The call came after the Opposition on Thursday called for Mr Pederick’s sacking after social media posts raised questions about allowance claims.
Mr Marshall said he had spoken to Mr Pederick.
“He advises me that he is confident that his claims are correct,” Mr Marshall said.
“But he has gone on to tell me that he will be standing aside as the whip for us in the House of Assembly.
Mr Marshall said Mr Pederick has 14 years worth of transactions and he was resigning out of an abundance of caution.
“He knows that this has become a very significant distraction for the government at a time when we need to be 100 per cent focused on the coronavirus pandemic,” Mr Marshall said.
“And he is also very cognisant of the heavy toll that this is having on his family at the moment.
“So he has advised me that he will be resigning as the party room whip.”
Government whips maintain party discipline, manage votes and legislative business and help the party leadership in the Parliament.
An audit of Mr Pederick’s claims have revealed some inconsistencies – some of which Mr Pederick has acknowledged himself.
Mr Pederick last week said he had changed the dates for several claims he had made for the allowance, including claims for Christmas Day in 2011 and 2012.
Cracking the whip!! pic.twitter.com/tWP9gLiXow
— Adrian Pederick, MP (@AdrianPederick) July 4, 2019
Opposition treasury spokesman Stephen Mullighan questioned why Mr Pederick had not been sacked.
“Mr Pederick is earning more than $35,000 in additional pay in his role as Whip, yet he has faced no punishment for his use of the Country Members Accommodation Allowance,” he said.
On Sunday Mr Marshall accepted the resignation of three government ministers – Stephan Knoll, Tim Whetstone and David Ridgway – and the President of the Upper House Terry Stephens amid ongoing perks scandals.
When asked about his allowance claims on Wednesday Mr Pederick said he was not in a position to respond to questions.
He is expected to provide a statement today.
The Advertiser has contacted Mr Pederick for comment.
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