Labor's Anna Burke has become the third Speaker in three years and only the second woman to hold the position, after a tumultuous day in which Peter Slipper resigned the key parliamentary role.

Mr Slipper entered the lower house about 7.20pm (AEDT) on Tuesday to make the shock announcement he was voluntarily standing down for the good of the parliament.

He is facing sexual harassment allegations in the Federal Court in a civil case brought by staffer James Ashby, but denies the claims.

However, when parliament returned on Tuesday coalition MPs came out in force to condemn Mr Slipper, elevated by the government to Speaker last November, after court documents revealed another series of text messages allegedly sent by Mr Slipper to Mr Ashby.

One message referred to female genitalia as "shell-less mussels" while another described Liberal frontbencher Sophie Mirabella as an "ignorant botch" (sic).