Labor’s national secretary, George Wright, has resigned from his position in the ALP and is leaving politics to join BHP Billiton’s corporate affairs team.
Wright served as the ALP’s national secretary for five-and-a-half years, working on the notoriously difficult 2013 federal election campaign, where the relationship between the then prime minister, Kevin Rudd, and campaign headquarters was strained, and the near-win 2016 election campaign, where the Coalition’s large majority was almost wiped out by a resurgent Labor.
In the immediate aftermath of the 2016 election campaign, senior Liberal members said the Coalition had a lot to learn from Labor’s slick campaign, including their sophisticated field operation.
In a statement on Tuesday, Wright said it had been an “enormous honour” to serve as national secretary and he knew Bill Shorten “will make a great Australian prime minister”.
“My decision to step down from this role is not one I have come to lightly and have discussed extensively with my family and Labor leader Bill Shorten,” Wright said.
“But, after two federal election campaigns, two ALP national conferences and numerous byelections, it is time for me to spend more time with my family in my home town of Melbourne and seek new challenges and opportunities.”
The Liberal party’s federal director, Tony Nutt, said on Tuesday that Wright “has the respect of all his professional peers”.
“I wish him and his family well for the future,” Nutt said on Twitter.
In 2009 Wright worked for National Australia Bank in a senior public affairs role on the bank’s high-profile “break-up” campaign.
He also worked, before 2007, with the Australian Council of Trade Unions’ “Your Rights at Work” campaign against the WorkChoices industrial relations laws.
Shorten said on Tuesday that Wright had been central to the work of rebuilding Labor.
“I have worked alongside George in various capacities for 22 years – he’s someone whose advice I’ve always valued,” Shorten said.
“He’s a man who stays calm under pressure and, even in the toughest of times, never loses his sense of humour.
“Our entire movement thanks him for his distinguished service and we wish him all the very best with what the future holds.”
Wright served as ALP national secretary under former prime ministers Julia Gillard and Kevin Rudd as well as Shorten.
