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Kiri Allan has resigned from all her portfolios immediately,
Prime Minister Chris Hipkins said, after she was taken into
police custody over the accident in the national capital of
Wellington on Sunday.
Allan was charged with careless use of a motor vehicle and
refusing to accompany a police officer, and issued with an
infringement notice for returning an excess breath alcohol
reading, Hipkins told a press conference.
"She understood that retaining her ministerial warrant was
untenable, especially for a justice minister to be charged with
criminal offending," Hipkins said.
"While her actions are inexcusable, I was given information that
she was experiencing extreme emotional distress at the time of
the incident."
Allan is the fourth minister to resign since March from the
centre-left Labour government and ahead of an election in
October. Opinion polls suggest a close contest with the main
opposition National Party.
Hipkins said Allan's "recent personal struggles with mental
health have been well documented and it appears some of those
issues came to a head yesterday."
Allan, who was also minister for regional development, minister
of conservation, and minister for emergency management, returned
to parliamentary duties last Monday after taking some days off
due to mental health issues.
Once touted as a potential successor to previous prime minister
Jacinda Ardern, Allan said she will take time to consider her
future in politics.
"Over recent weeks, I've faced a number of personal
difficulties. I took time off to address those, and believed I
was okay to juggle those challenges with the pressure of being a
Minister. My actions yesterday show I wasn't okay," Allan said
in a statement.
(Reporting by Renju Jose in Sydney; Editing by Lincoln Feast)
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