Victoria's Premier is GONE: Jacinta Allan to hand inher resignation after her closest Labor allies turned on her and demanded she quit

By NICHOLAS COMINO, POLITICAL REPORTER, AUSTRALIA Victoria's Premier Jacinta Allan will resign after weeks of speculation over her future exploded into a full-blown leadership crisis.  The decision comes just hours after Allan refused to step down despite a cross-factional delegation, including six ministers, informing the embattled premier that she had lost the support of a majority of the Labor caucus. A leadership spill motion had been expected to go before the caucus on Tuesday morning, but her resignation means that will no longer be necessary. Her departure is expected to pave the way for Deputy Premier and Education Minister Ben Carroll to become the party's next leader. Her resignation comes just four months out from the election and after she survived a leadership scare in June.  The party has been in power since former premier Daniel Andrews led the ALP to victory in 2014.  But Allan has faced mounting pressure in recent months following revelations of corruption on Big Build projects. She has refused to call a royal commission into the sector after corruption-busting lawyer Geoffrey Watson estimated it had cost the state $15 billion. Persistent crime and a failure to reach a pay deal with public school teachers have also dogged the government. There's no guarantee Carroll can lead Labor to a record fourth-straight election victory if he were to become premier, Redbridge pollster and former Liberal strategist Tony Barry said.  Victoria's Premier Jacinta Allan will resign after weeks of speculation over her future exploded into a full-blown leadership crisis