South Australia's former deputy premier looks set to stay in state parliament until the end of the month after the Labor government put it on the opposition to declare her seat vacant.
Vickie Chapman wrote to independent Speaker Dan Cregan on April 26 saying she intended to resign on May 31, following the defeat of the former Liberal government at the March state election.
Mr Cregan's interpretation of the state constitution — which he backed up with legal advice on Tuesday — was that her letter marked her official resignation date, which she disputed.
Having an election sooner rather than later would prevent unsuccessful Liberal candidates at the federal election from running in a by-election for Ms Chapman's safe, eastern suburbs seat of Bragg.
Labor did not move a motion to declare her seat vacant, and she was sworn in on Tuesday.
In a ministerial statement to parliament this afternoon, the Leader of Government Business in the lower house, Tom Koutsantonis, said Opposition Leader David Speirs should be the one who followed the Speaker's legal advice and moved the motion to bring on a by-election.
"If this action is taken by the Leader of the Opposition, the government will support its passage," Mr Koutsantonis said.
"This is now a matter for the Liberal Party and the Leader of the Opposition.
"The government does not intend to use our majority to force a determination of this matter.
He said it would "not honour the values of our party" to remove an MP elected by her constituents.
Mr Speirs said the focus on when Ms Chapman had officially left parliament was an attempt by Premier Peter Malinauskas "to deflect attention away from the Labor government's humiliation by the ombudsman".
Ms Chapman pointed out yesterday that she had been welcomed to parliament by the Governor.
On Wednesday, the ombudsman cleared her of any wrongdoing in her decision as planning minister to refuse a port on Kangaroo Island.
Ms Chapman announced she would quit on the same day as Mr Speirs was elected as the new Opposition Leader.
