Anthony Albanese faces internal party pushback against the AUKUS pact at the ALP’s national conference in August, risking the united front the prime minister seeks to portray on national security.

As Mr Albanese slammed Paul Keating’s benign view on China as out of touch with reality, left-wing unions and party branch members, emboldened by Mr Keating, stepped up their opposition to establishing a nuclear-powered submarine base in NSW.