Labor senator Sam Dastyari has resigned from the Senate following a string of media reports detailing his ties to Chinese donors.
The resignation comes following weeks of pressure from the Turnbull Government, and even suggestions from fellow Labor politicians that the NSW senator should think “deeply” about his future in the parliament.
"I've decided that the best service I can render to the parliamentary Labor party is to not return to the Senate in 2018," Mr Dastyari told reporters in Sydney.
"I've not reached this decision lightly. But in my deliberations, I've been guided by my Labor values, which tell me that I should leave if my ongoing presence detracts from the pursuit of Labor's mission."
"It is evident to me we are at that point, so I will spare the party any further distraction."
Labor leader Bill Shorten said Sam Dastyari told him he would resign this morning.
"I told him I thought this was the right decision," Mr Shorten said.
"Sam Dastyari is a good, decent and loyal Australian, and an effective parliamentarian, but his judgement has let him down and now he has paid the heaviest price."
The departure creates a so-called casual vacancy in the Upper House and gives Labor the choice of who will replace the outgoing NSW senator.
Already, pundits are speculating the place could be given to Kristina Keneally if she fails to unseat Liberal MP John Alexander at the Bennelong by-election this weekend.
The calls for Senator Dastyari to resign have been growing louder all week, since reports emerged that the senator tried to persuade Labor’s deputy leader Tanya Plibersek not to meet a pro-democracy activist during a visit to Hong Kong in 2015.
Fairfax Media cited three sources who said Senator Dastyari tried to stop Ms Plibersek meeting academic Joseph Cheng Yu-shek, who is a critic of China's influence in Hong Kong. The sources said Ms Plibersek was surprised by her colleague's intervention, Fairfax reports.
The report is the latest in a string of allegations around Senator Dastyari's links with Chinese donors, which recently saw him demoted from leadership positions in the Labor party.
Several weeks ago it was reported the NSW senator advised a Chinese donor on simple counter-surveillance techniques. An audio recording of Senator Dastyari defending China's position on the South China Sea surfaced in the same week.
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