Vickie Chapman silent as stand-off continues with official resignation date disputed

Vickie Chapman has been sworn in to parliament despite Speaker Dan Cregan previously saying she wasn’t eligible to attend.

Former deputy premier Vickie Chapman entered the lower house chamber at 10.57am, despite being caught up in a Constitutional stand-off which has thrown grave doubt on whether she is still eligible to remain an MP.

Speaker Dan Cregan wrote to Ms Chapman over the weekend to tell her she was no longer an MP after she had written him a letter outlining her intention to quit parliament on May 31.

Mr Cregan, who has taken Crown Law advice, said the state’s constitution did not allow an MP to set their own retirement date and he considered her resignation to be effective immediately.

Ms Chapman, who is MP for the eastern suburbs seat of Bragg, disputed this interpretation and Mr Cregan confirmed the former attorney-general had “made submissions which are being considered’’. “If Ms Chapman attends parliament this week, then the issue may be addressed at that time,’’ he said.

Former deputy premier Vickie Chapman enters the lower house during the opening of the 55th South Australian Parliament. Picture: Brenton Edwards

But a cheerful-looking Ms Chapman declined to answer questions about whether she would attend parliament when approached by reporters outside her eastern suburbs home on Tuesday morning.

Asked by The Advertiser if she would be sitting in the chamber later that morning, Ms Chapman said: “Why would I disappear?”

She later entered the lower house chamber and sat next to former premier Steven Marshall.

Ms Chapman’s name and electorate was among a list of MPs whose election was certified by the Electoral Commissioner in a formal reading to parliament. She was then sworn in as an MP alongside three other MPs in the first group of the 47-seat lower house to take the oath of office. She left the chamber at 11.34am after the swearing-in process finished.

On Tuesday morning, Premier Peter Malinauskas urged Ms Chapman not to attend.

“I would hope the former attorney-general of the state wouldn’t want to put the parliament into a constitutional crisis on its opening day,” Mr Malinauskas told ABC Radio Adelaide that morning.

“It’s a significant embarrassment for the Liberal Party and hopefully better judgment prevails and the crisis doesn’t escalate through the course of the day.”

It was previously thought that if Ms Chapman turned up and was sworn in then it was possible the House of Assembly could vote to remove her from parliament – though it was believed the Labor Party would be reluctant to take such a serious step.

Mr Malinauskas called on new Liberal leader David Speirs to use his authority – “if he has any’’ – to ensure Ms Chapman did not create a Constitutional crisis when parliament reopened.

Speaker Dan Cregan, right, leads Premier Peter Malinauskas and other MPs to to Government House during the opening of the 55th Parliament. Picture: Brenton Edwards

Mr Speirs declined to comment. “This is a matter between Ms Chapman and the Speaker and we will wait for a resolution,’’ a spokesperson for the Opposition said.

The dispute came as five of the most senior members of the opposition were absent from parliament due to contracting Covid-19.

Mr Speirs and deputy leader John Gardner both tested positive last week, as did South-East MP Nick Mc­Bride,before health spokeswoman Ashton Hurn and former health minister Stephen Wade each tweeted on Monday that they had the virus.

On the government benches, Zoe Bettison and Andrea Michaels will also be absent due to Covid-19.

The virus has also reached federal Liberal MP James Stevens,who has had to slow down his election campaign in Sturt.

Mr Stevens confirmed to he had been plunged into isolation for seven days after testing positive on Friday.