Parliamentary leader speaks out after former premier Kristina Keneally says Kaila Murnain, the assistant general secretary, should step up as incumbent loses support

Pressure is mounting on Jamie Clements, Labor’s New South Wales general secretary, after the acting state parliamentary leader joined growing internal calls for him to resign.

NSW Labor boss Jamie Clements must resign, says Kristina Keneally Read more

Linda Burney, Labor’s deputy leader and acting leader, said Clements’ position had become untenable and he needed to quit for the good of the party, echoing views expressed by former NSW premier Kristina Keneally. Burney made clear her call was issued with the support of Luke Foley, the state leader.

Stefanie Jones, 27, a former Labor staffer, alleged Clements intimidated her and tried to kiss her in an office in Parliament House in June last year. Clements has denied the allegations.

Jones applied for an apprehended violence order against him but dropped it on Wednesday when he agreed to stay away from her for the next 12 months and have his parliamentary pass revoked so he could not go into the building unaccompanied.

Jones has described her treatment by the party over the matter as “disgusting” and “soul-destroying”.

“It has now become clear,” Burney said, “that this matter will only be resolved with the resignation of Mr Clements.

“I am calling on Mr Clements, in consultation with Luke Foley today, to resign.”

Enough platitudes and excuses: here is the truth about this week of sexism Read more

Burney said it was important for Labor to “draw a line under this matter”, noting that a state party conference was only a month away and a federal election was due this year.

“For the good of the party, for the party members and for Labor to move forward with a vibrant policy agenda, we need to make sure that this is resolved. That can only happen in one way, the resignation of Mr Clements.”

Bill Shorten, the federal Labor leader, had demanded a report on the issue earlier on Thursday and is understood to believe that Clements must go, but Burney said Shorten’s intervention had not been the trigger for her to speak out.

Keneally said the allegations had made Clements’s position untenable and he should be replaced by Kaila Murnain, the assistant general secretary.

The party needed to reform “from the top down and the bottom up”. Keneally said the first step would be appointing Murnain as general secretary, calling her “experienced, ethical and smart”.

“This type of appointment would send a clear signal, it would be more than symbolic, Kaila would deliver transformative and transparent leadership,” she said.