Furious opposition calls to remove speaker fail and parliament is swiftly adjourned after stormy opening

Papua New Guinea’s parliament descended into chaos on Tuesday as prime minister Peter O’Neill showed no signs of stepping down, despite his promise to resign on Sunday.

Parliament resumed for the first time in three weeks, after a tense period in PNG politics during which a number of high-profile ministers defected from the government to join the opposition bloc, which is pushing to remove O’Neill and replace him with one of their own MPs.

Resignation of Peter O’Neill triggers political confusion in Port Moresby as his opponents plot to block anointed successor

Papua New Guinea is braced for a political reckoning after a tumultuous week that has seen prime minister Peter O’Neill announce his resignation following high-level defections from his party.

On Sunday, O’Neill, who has been prime minister since 2011, told a news conference in Port Moresby that he would be resigning and handing over the leadership to Sir Julius Chan, himself a former prime minister, whom O’Neill described as one of the nation’s “founding fathers”.

Parliament in turmoil as O’Neill speaks of a ‘need for change’ after series of high-profile defections

Peter O’Neill, the prime minister of Papua New Guinea, has resigned after weeks of high-level defections from his ruling party.

O’Neill told a news conference in Port Moresby that recent changes to political allegiances in parliament had shown a “need for change”.