Two disgraced MPs, both suspended from the NSW Liberal Party, have resigned from the NSW Parliament, just hours after Premier Mike Baird resisted calls to help expel the pair.

Speaker Shelley Hancock announced the resignations of Newcastle MP Tim Owen and Charlestown MP Andrew Cornwell when question time began at 2.15pm.

NSW Premier Mike Baird at a press conference prior to calling on two former Liberal MPs to resign from NSW Parliament. Credit:Peter Rae

In an extraordinary development on Tuesday morning, Mr Owen confessed to a corruption inquiry that he lied about returning an envelope stuffed with $10,000 in cash to property developer and now Newcastle lord mayor Jeff McCloy.

Mr Cornwell, the former chief government whip, has admitted to taking $20,000 from property developers.