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Now we turn to politics and WA Premier Roger Cook held a press conference in which he thanked Electoral Commissioner Robert Kennedy for his service, despite the government reportedly pressuring him to resign or face removal by a vote in Parliament.

The House was poised to debate a motion to impeach Kennedy following the troubled March 8 election, but Kennedy submitted his resignation to Gov. Chris Dawson on Tuesday.

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Kennedy was reportedly given an ultimatum to resign or be sacked, but Cook did not confirm this this morning, saying he would not engage in private talks between the Public Sector Commission and Kennedy.

However, Kennedy’s dismissal by parliamentary vote was not guaranteed, as Opposition Leader Basil Zempilas stated yesterday that his party would not take the motion to parliament and leave the job to the state government.

Cook said Kennedy’s dismissal had prevented this confusion and was somewhat relieved.

“I would like to thank Robert Kennedy for his service as Election Commissioner. He has submitted his resignation, and now we will begin the work of appointing a new one,” he said.

“From an extraordinary perspective, the real Leader of the Opposition cast doubt on whether, as leader of the opposition, he would support the shadow minister’s motion in parliament.

“So we understand that this has caused some confusion and concern. However, these matters have been taken out of our hands and Mr. Kennedy has resigned from office.”