Caucus cruelty: How Richard Marles went from defence minister to liquidator in chief

Mark Dreyfus took a phone call on Wednesday night that made it clear he would lose his job within days. The attorney-general was preparing for a Labor caucus meeting on Friday that was meant to celebrate the party’s stunning election victory last weekend. Without warning, he discovered the factional powerbrokers wanted him gone.

Who made the call? Deputy Prime Minister Richard Marles told Dreyfus of his fate over the phone about 8.30pm, say Labor sources aware of the timing. It came after days of plotting within the Right faction to decide who would stand or fall in the new ministry.

Marles was the key figure in the caucus changes this week. As leader of the Right in his home state of Victoria, and the most senior figure in the faction at a national level, he was the major force in a convulsion that has shocked some of his colleagues.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese (right) did not knock back factional calls made by his deputy, Richard Marles (far left).Credit: James Brickwood

Marles, who is also defence minister, has mobilised his followers to take down a few ministers to make room for some of his own faction. One of his cohort, Sam Rae, is being named as the chief liquidator who dispatches those who get in the way.

The outcome on Thursday sealed things just as Marles had told Dreyfus the night before. The Right faction agreed that the attorney-general would not be a minister. They chose Rae as one of their own to rise to the ministry. They also chose another Victorian, Daniel Mulino.

Two up, two out. The second casualty was Ed Husic, the industry minister and senior member of the NSW Right. Under Marles, the Victorians demanded more numbers in the ministry to reflect their success at the election. The leaders of the NSW Right, Tony Burke and Chris Bowen, had to deal with this demand. One of their members was on notice.

Labor is famous for the “faceless men” who would dictate terms to leaders, but there were no faceless men this time. The factional push had a leader, Marles, and a group of followers who wanted to get ahead by cutting down ministers.

Dreyfus knew to check with the faction after the election, but his text messages to Marles did not lead to a phone call until Wednesday night. He would probably not have contested the election if the factional warlords had told him of their plans earlier.

Husic was a target as soon as Marles demanded one of the NSW positions. There was no phone call, however, to negotiate a peaceful transition, such as giving him time to step down sometime during this term. The faction worked slowly all week to drive him out.

The result was certain by Thursday afternoon, when smaller states – including South Australia, where the Right is led by Don Farrell – fell in behind Marles. This meant the NSW group were outnumbered and would have to give in.

The Victorian case was based on maths. The state’s Right faction had to accept an increase in NSW power in 2022 in the government’s first ministry, and they wanted to restore the equilibrium based on the election outcome. The key fact is that Marles and his group performed well at the election, and they wanted the ministry to reflect their “quota” within the caucus.

Other factors were also at work. The Left did very well at the election, especially in Queensland, and this meant the overall ratio in the ministry had to change from 16:14 in favour of the Right to 15:15 for each side. One of the Marles group says the complaints from the NSW Right are merely “performance theatre” because everyone knows how the numbers work.

As recently as January, for instance, Queensland Right member Anika Wells was promoted into cabinet in her portfolio of aged care. The Victorians accepted this outcome at the time, but they were determined to assert their rights after the election – and they are defending Marles for standing up for their state.

Mark Dreyfus in the first meeting of the new Labor caucus on Friday.Credit: James Brickwood

A delegation went to Anthony Albanese on Thursday afternoon to urge the prime minister to intervene to save Dreyfus and Husic, but he would not. Albanese has huge authority after the election victory, but he chose not to use it. He backed Marles over others.

A former prime minister, Paul Keating, is scathing about the “factional lightweights” who made this happen. In his statement on Thursday night, he pointed out that Albanese has made a series of “captain’s calls” on candidates and positions but, this time, chose not to intervene.

None of this has been about merit. None of it has been about ministerial performance. It has been wholly about factional power. That is the Labor way because the factions run things by the numbers, but MPs are worried that this week’s bloodshed was especially vicious.

The Left, for instance, were able to plan a smooth transition because senior members resigned last year, opening up positions for new ministers. The Right, by contrast, tore down two of their most senior people in a very public display of brutality.

Marles has flexed his factional muscle for everyone to see. Rae has confirmed his status as a factional head-kicker. He was the state secretary in Victoria when Labor won a landslide election in 2018, so he is respected for that success. But he is making enemies for the way he works.

Power is shifting within the caucus and the government. The Victorian Right used to be dominated by former leader Bill Shorten, but he has departed. The vacuum left by Adem Somyurek, the former state politician removed in a scandal, has been filled by the Marles group. A key supporter is Stephen Conroy, a former cabinet minister who ran rings around his factional opponents for decades. He has left parliament, but he never leaves politics.

This group has a legitimate claim to more positions in the ministry, given it has more people in parliament and the old Shorten group has shrunk over time. So it is applying the Labor rules by the book – but without mercy.

Marles has exerted his power in a way that sends a signal to others in the Right, such as the NSW team of Burke and Bowen or the Queensland faction led by Treasurer Jim Chalmers. The usual practice over the past few years has been to regard Chalmers as heir apparent to Albanese, but this week’s events have changed the game.

Albanese will rule with immense authority from the endorsement of the people last Saturday. Just as Liberal prime minister John Howard made sure to have several potential successors to jostle for position, Albanese may not mind having more than one potential heir.

Marles has given his followers what they want, even at the cost of tearing down cabinet ministers. It is too early, however, to be sure he has gained more sway in cabinet. There are now only two members of the Victorian Right in this inner sanctum: Marles and Clare O’Neil, the housing minister. The NSW Right still have four.

And the NSW Right have long memories. Marles has managed to unite this powerful group against him in a fury, and this will bring a new dynamic to the government in its second term. It means he cannot count on their support on leadership positions in the future.

The wounds from this week will fester for years. That is what happens when Labor warlords get the knives out.

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