Labor’s Tim Hammond quits politics to be with his kids: 'I’d never get this time back'

A Western Australian MP is resigning from politics in order to spend more time with his three young children.

Federal Labor Member for Perth Tim Hammond has two daughters, aged six and two-and-a-half, and a six-month-old son with his wife, Lindsay.

Explaining his decision to step down from Parliament earlier today, the 43-year-old said he’d been unable to reconcile his life as a politician with being the kind of father he hoped to be.

“It just wasn’t working in relation to how present I needed to be at home as a dad to three wonderful little children,” the Labor MP told Perth radio station 6PR, The Australian reports.

For Hammond, the shadow minister for consumer affairs, two years of travelling back and forth across the country has had a significant personal toll.

The frontbencher said the constant time away from home has caused his relationships with Sidney, O'Hara and Tully to suffer in a way that is no longer “sustainable”.

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"I thought I had an appreciation of how to manage my duties as a federal Member of Parliament in a way that did not have such an impact on my family. I got that wrong,” he said, according to the ABC.

“I just did not anticipate the profound effect my absence would have on all of us.

"My wife and I had tried everything under the sun to make this work in a way that I felt it wasn't compromising my ability just to be the best dad that I could be.”

Fellow politicians from both major parties have commented on Hammond’s departure, saying they appreciated the difficulty of juggling the demands of politics with family life.

"Very sorry to hear about Tim Hammond’s resignation... it is true that federal politics from WA very tough on our families," Federal Finance Minster Mathias Cormann, who also hails from Perth, tweeted.

Over the past 12 months, politicians have become increasingly vocal about the challenges of balancing parliament with family life, especially being a parent.

In March 2017, Labor frontbencher Kate Ellis announced she would quit federal politics at the next election because she didn't want to spend more time away from her young family.

"I have made this decision for one simple reason: I cannot bear the thought of spending at least 20 weeks of every year in Canberra away from my son, who will be starting school in the next term of Parliament, and from the rest of my family," Ellis, who welcomed her second son last July, explained in a letter.

"Ultimately, we all have to make choices and I know that regularly missing things like my son's first day at school, his first sporting match, or even just tucking him in at night or being there when he is sick and wants his mum, would make me absolutely miserable."

Two months earlier, former NSW Premier Mike Baird stepped down from his position, intending to spend more time with family members.

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"My father and my mother and my sister are going through a very serious health challenge and, to be honest, at times I have been in pain not being able to spend the time that I should," he said.

"I've probably felt that [personal cost] more than any other time in the past few months."

Tim Hammond was elected to federal politics in 2016, having previously contested the seat of Swan six years earlier.

Speaking to the media on Wednesday, the barrister explained that the idea of having a third child hadn’t been “on the cards” at the time of his election, admitting baby Tully was "an unexpected but wonderful blessing".

“Tim has decided to put his family first. He wants to be there for his wife and children more often,” Shorten said.

“That’s something all of us feel very deeply, and none of us can argue with … as a husband and a father, I’m glad he’ll be with the people he cares about most in this world."

Perth is one of the five of 'Super Saturday' federal by-elections. It is the only by-election that did not result from a position opening up from the dual-citizenship issues. For a live coverage and results, click on the live blog.