NEWCASTLE councillor Matthew Byrne resigned from council and the Labor party effective immediately on Friday following calls from the Newcastle Independents to do so.
Mr Byrne had already ruled himself out of contesting the December council election after the Newcastle Herald revealed on Thursday that police had taken out a domestic AVO against him on behalf of a woman last year.
The former nurse turned lawyer could have served out his term on council as an independent but pulled the pin after his political rivals called for his resignation.
"I resign as councillor (Ward 4) for City of Newcastle effective immediately," Byrne said in an email to the lord mayor and council CEO on Friday afternoon.
"I have arranged for my iPhone, iPad, security ID and badge to be returned."
Newcastle Independents councillors John Church, Kath Elliott and Andrea Rufo called for Byrne to resign in a joint-statement early Friday.
They extended their sympathies to the woman involved, but Cr Elliott said she was "horrified to see the news" and could not "sit in the chamber with Cr Byrne".
"I understand that the AVO was imposed on him last August," she said. "That is a year he has been sitting on council, taking the high moral ground, outwardly supporting Got Your Back Sista and other domestic violence charities, and all the while, hiding this."
Cr Church questioned how Byrne was endorsed to contest the election.
"I understand that political parties vet their candidates and Cr Byrne was selected recently by the party to contest Ward 4 as Labor's number one candidate," he said.
"What vetting process did the Labor party do on its candidates? I am also calling on the lord mayor to tell us what she knew and when. For a whole year this has been ... kept from the public."
The Labor councillors said in a joint statement on Friday that they had "acted swiftly" with the lord mayor "immediately" requesting "Cr Byrne's resignation as a member of the Labor team".
"The lord mayor spoke with Cr Byrne yesterday regarding these allegations. In that conversation, he confirmed there is an apprehension order relating to his family separation and custody process," they said.
"The lord mayor also spoke yesterday with the woman involved. She has explicitly asked us not to engage in any further public comment about her private life. We request that her family's privacy be respected."
In response to the Newcastle Independents, the Labor councillors said:
"John Church and Kath Elliott continue to support Allan Robinson remaining on council after his shocking treatment of women, homophobic slurs, recent court convictions for illegal dumping, and past conviction for assault.
"John Church has had many years and multiple formal opportunities to step up, yet has consistently failed to do so.
"Allan Robinson continues to be a councillor, and John Church continues to benefit politically from Allan Robinson, including failing to rule out an exchange of preferences."
Cr Robinson separated from the Newcastle Independents alliance last month.
