One Nation Senator for New South Wales Warwick Stacey has resigned from the Senate for personal health reasons, creating a casual vacancy in the Australian Parliament’s upper house.

One Nation leader Senator Pauline Hanson gave her full support and admiration to Senator Stacey, who announced his resignation today.

“Warwick Stacey is a man of principle and a great Australian,” Senator Hanson said. “It is with profound regret that we farewell him from the Senate so soon after he was elected.

“I was delighted when it was announced Senator Stacey had won a seat representing NSW. I knew he would bring a wealth of knowledge, experience and expertise to our team along with the strong conservative values that made Australia great.

“I wish Senator Stacey all the very best with his health and his future.”

Senator Stacey said he could not in good conscience bring anything less than a 100% dedicated effort to his role as a senator for NSW.

“Unfortunately, I will be unable to fully dedicate myself to the role as I deal with my personal health issues,” he said.

“I don’t think a person elected to Parliament should be anything less than completely dedicated to a role entrusted to them by voters, so I’m resigning to make way for someone who can do that on behalf of the people of NSW.

“I thank Senator Hanson and One Nation for giving me the opportunity to serve and represent my state in Canberra – it was a memorable campaign that saw our party’s vote rise across the country. I thank the people of NSW for trusting me with this role. I thank the staff members who joined my office to work with a brand-new senator. I also wish all the best to my successor and the One Nation team.”

One Nation will announce the individual who will succeed Senator Stacey in coming weeks, ahead of the joint sitting of the NSW parliament required by the Constitution to ratify his successor.