A factional brawl between elements of the Victorian Labor left has resulted in the right faction boosting its numbers at the party’s national conference.
In a note to colleagues, the Victorian secretary of the socialist left, Mathew Hilakari reported late on Wednesday the faction had missed out on the final delegate position “as a direct result of the industrial left giving two votes to the right”.
The vote switch has increased the size of the right’s delegation at the national conference, with the Victorian right delegation now numbering 47. The socialist left will send 28 delegates, the industrial left 10, and there will be two non-aligned.
With both factions chasing every vote given the numbers are finely balanced, and with the right intent on securing the numbers to control the outcome of key votes at the national conference, Hilakari was scathing about the backroom manoeuvres, which have been triggered by a power realignment in the state.
“This will have a real impact on how progressive our national platform will be, and embolden the right in their agenda,” he said in the note to colleagues. “It will also mean that there is less chance that the left will pick up the last spot on the national executive, and may give the right a significant majority in this key party decision making body”.
“As it stands the left in Victoria will send two less national conference delegates than last time”.
Spurred by the left faction almost securing control of the last ALP national conference in 2015 for the first time since the mid-1980s – a development that made the last federal conference hair-raising for Bill Shorten to manage – the right factions in New South Wales and Victoria have launched a major organisational effort spearheaded by the NSW party secretary, Kaila Murnain, and the assistant national secretary, Sebastian Zwalf.
Whether the right is able to control the conference in its own right, or seek support from the CFMEU delegation during politically controversial votes, hinges on the outcome of delegate selection underway in Queensland.
But while the right is benefiting from Victoria’s internal left brawl, splits between power brokers from the right is also causing behind-the-scenes angst on Bill Shorten’s home turf.
The former federal minister-turned gaming advocate Stephen Conroy has nominated for the preselection committee in Victoria – a development which has prompted criticism from within the right.
Conroy has made it known that he will not seek to return to the ALP national executive given he is executive director of the industry association Responsible Wagering Australia. But some are critical of his decision to remain on the preselections committee, which he has sat on for two decades.
