MP Daryl Maguire told: Go or we’ll sack you
DISGRACED MP Daryl Maguire’s resignation from Parliament appears imminent as the major parties begin the tussle to fill his seat. Deputy Premier John Barilaro yesterday dramatically escalated pressure on him to quit.
NSW
Don't miss out on the headlines from NSW. Followed categories will be added to My News.
DISGRACED MP Daryl Maguire’s resignation from Parliament appears imminent as the major parties begin the tussle to fill his seat.
Deputy Premier John Barilaro yesterday dramatically escalated pressure on the Wagga Wagga MP to resign.
“It’s clear that the people of W agga Wagga would like to see Daryl resign. Therefore, it’s clear, that Daryl Maguire should resign as a Member of Parliament,” Mr Barilaro said.
Mr Maguire quit the Liberal Party and resigned from a parliamentary secretary role last week after the Independent Commission Against Corruption revealed secret recordings of him trying to make “mega money” by helping developers score “quick” approvals.
MORE NEWS:
LADS HIT LUCKY STREAK IN COURT
THAI TEAM’S FIGHT FOR SURVIVAL
HOW RUSSELL CROWE WALKED INTO ‘A HIT’
Labor will move to expel Mr Maguire if he is still clinging on as an MP when Parliament resumes on August 7. An expulsion motion hasn’t been successfully put forward in Parliament since 1917 but Mr Barilaro expects Mr Maguire will quit before August 7.
“We won’t get to that point, we’ve got weeks until we get to Parliament. I’m very confident that we will not see a motion from the Labor Party,” Mr Barilaro said.
Mr Maguire quitting the seat will trigger a by-election and the Liberal Party is already working to preselect a candidate after Labor announced it will run Dan Hayes.
Despite the seat being held by the Liberal Party for 19 years, the Nationals are expected to run their own candidate in the seat, breaking Coalition convention.
Wagga-based Nationals upper house MP Wes Fang told The Daily Telegraph: “If I’m the best person to win the seat in a three-cornered contest then I’ll do what’s best for the party.” He said a number of people had put their hands up and the candidate group was looking “really strong”.
Mr Barilaro said he had not spoken to Mr Fang but believes the Nationals are “best placed to represent all of regional NSW”. “The rules say we get to negotiate the position of the Coalition about who would be best placed to run a candidate,” he said.
If Mr Maguire does not quit then Labor’s motion will have the support of three Green MPs, Shooter’s Party Phil Donato and independents Alex Greenwich and Greg Piper. Mr Barilaro said it would be a decision of the party room whether Nationals support the motion while the Liberals are waiting to consult Premier Gladys Berejiklian when she returns from leave.