‘Election euphoria will be short-lived’: Albanese faces more Labor fury over axing ministers

Former Labor foreign minister Gareth Evans has rebuked the government over the dramatic removal of two cabinet ministers in a factional move that has shocked MPs, adding his criticism after former prime minister Paul Keating attacked the changes.

Evans’ criticism comes after Prime Minister Anthony Albanese urged the federal caucus to show unity and focus after their victory at the federal election, in a meeting that confirmed the removal of Attorney-General Mark Dreyfus and Industry Minister Ed Husic.

Albanese addresses the Labor caucus on Friday morning.Credit: Alex Ellinghausen

The factional turmoil forces a bigger change to the cabinet and wider ministry within days, with Albanese planning to name his team so they can be sworn into office at Government House on Tuesday.

Keating attacked the “factional lightweights” who removed Husic and Dreyfus in order to gain advancement for members of the Victorian Right who sought elevation to the ministry, and he took aim at Albanese for choosing not to intervene to save them.

Evans, who was a cabinet minister from 1983 to 1996 during the Labor governments of Bob Hawke and Keating, expressed his disappointment at the removal of two ministers he regarded as “outstandingly competent” and principled.

“Their own portfolios apart, both have been models of good judgment and decency in helping the Albanese government navigate its response to the extraordinarily community-divisive agony of Gaza,” he said.

“If there is any repeat of the judgment shown here by those in the parliamentary leadership who engineered and accepted this outcome, our election euphoria is going to be rather short-lived.”

The changes drew pointed criticism from Labor MPs who noted that Dreyfus was the government’s most prominent Jewish voice and Husic was its most senior Muslim, but caucus members declined to comment in public on their concerns.

Lebanese Australian community leader Dr Jamal Rifi, who campaigned for Labor in the election, went public with his concern about losing Husic from the ministry.

“For Ed Husic to pay the price of this thumping majority is very hard to take,” Rifi said on the ABC.

Rifi said Albanese should make a “captain’s call” to save Husic after members of the Muslim community voted for Labor in western Sydney electorates, despite attempts by some in the Muslim community to shift votes to other candidates.

Attorney-General Mark Dreyfus at the Labor caucus meeting.Credit: Alex Ellinghausen

Dreyfus made no statement on Friday and attended the caucus meeting in Canberra that voted for his removal, without displaying his views on the events.

Husic, who did not attend caucus, told Nine News he would keep putting “one foot in front of the other” after losing his ministry.

“You’ve got to keep moving onwards,” he said. “I am used to politics having its ups and downs, and you can’t be bitter about these things. I’ve got a lot of fuel in the tank.”

Labor caucus members gathered in Parliament House on Friday morning to celebrate the election outcome and hold a formal vote on the new ministry after faction meetings on Thursday sealed the fate of the two sacked ministers.

Albanese used his address to urge MPs to show unity and focus after their victory, saying they should not be turning inward.

“I repeated the message a number of times in this room, of the importance of unity, of not getting ahead of ourselves, of being focused not on ourselves, because I’ve seen that happen, too,” he said.

“We know where that ends. Focus out on the Australian people, on the people who voted for us. That’s got to be our focus, each and every day.”

The caucus meeting ended with 15 members of the Right faction and 15 from the Left being named to the ministry, increasing the Left’s numbers by a single position to reflect its success in winning seats at the election.

This forced the Right to sacrifice one of its places in the 30 positions in the ministry, while Deputy Prime Minister Richard Marles and his supporters argued successfully for their state group within the Right should gain more ministerial posts.

The caucus chose Victorian Right members Sam Rae and Daniel Mulino as the new members of the ministry, while the Left faction chose Victorian senator Jess Walsh as an incoming minister.

While the caucus elects the candidates for the ministry, Albanese allocates their portfolios and chooses most of those who enter cabinet.

One caucus member countered the criticism from Keating by noting the former prime minister had wielded the numbers of the Right faction in his time in power and knew the way faction agreements decided the ministry.

Some Labor caucus members criticised Marles for insisting on the changes, at the cost of two cabinet ministers, but his supporters argued that he was right to restore the “quota” of Victorian ministers to reflect the state’s numbers in the caucus.

The case against Dreyfus, said those who were loyal to Marles, was that the party needed to promote new ministers.

The Victorians said the NSW Right should take responsibility for the removal of Husic because the numbers in caucus made it clear one of their number would have to step down. If it was not Husic, they said, it would have to be other members of the NSW Right such as Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke, Energy Minister Chris Bowen or Education Minister Jason Clare.

There was no suggestion that the two prominent women from the state faction, Communications Minister Michelle Rowland or Regional Development Minister Kristy McBain, should be removed.

One Victorian said it was “cowardly” of the NSW Right to blame Marles and his state colleagues for the removal of Husic when they had to accept the way the numbers in the caucus determined the share of positions in the ministry.

MPs are speculating that Industrial Relations Minister Murray Watt, a former solicitor, could replace Dreyfus as attorney-general. Other lawyers in the ministry include Resources Minister Madeleine King, Veterans Affairs Minister Matt Keogh and Communications Minister Michelle Rowland.

NSW Labor Left senator Tim Ayres is expected to take over Husic’s portfolio of industry and science.

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