James Hayward has officially resigned from The Nationals WA this morning, just 24 hours after appearing in Perth Magistrates Court on child sex abuse charges.
In a statement, the party confirmed it had received a formal resignation of Mr Hayward’s membership.
The move came after the party agreed to suspend his membership late yesterday, effective immediately, following an emergency meeting of the state executive.
Earlier in the day, the 52-year-old South West MP had appeared in court on multiple charges of child sex abuse, allegations understood to relate to an incident involving an eight-year-old girl earlier this year.
Mr Hayward did not enter a plea and was bailed, with his next appearance scheduled for December 13.
The former City of Bunbury councillor and Nationals state president was elected to parliament in March; taking on the role of shadow minister for local government, water, and regional cities.
Mr Hayward lived and worked across the state as a journalist for GWN, later producing commercials and TV programs for Channel 7 and Channel 9 through his own media company FIREY Productions.
The company voluntarily entered liquidation in September after falling behind on payments before the COVID-19 pandemic, accruing debts to the Australian Taxation Office to the tune of between $300,000 and $400,000.
