CFMEU secretary John Setka takes on Anthony Albanese over effort to expel him from the Labor Party

Rogue construction union boss John Setka has demanded “more detail” about Anthony Albanese’s bid to expel him from the Labor Party, ahead of the vote on his membership this week.

Rogue construction union boss John Setka has launched a new challenge to Opposition Leader Anthony Albanese’s bid to expel him from the Labor Party.

The party’s national executive is due to vote this Friday on Mr Albanese’s effort to get rid of Mr Setka, who was last week put on a good behaviour bond and ordered to pay $1000 to charity after pleading guilty to using a carriage service to harass his wife.

BREAKING: John Setka has written to the Labor Party executive requesting more time to present his case. I understand that it will be delayed by at least a few weeks beyond July 5 ⁦@SkyNewsAust⁩ pic.twitter.com/fd50WX5cnk

— Laura Jayes (@ljayes) June 30, 2019

But Mr Setka, in a letter to ALP national secretary Noah Carroll, said the process was “completely unclear” and he could not respond to Mr Albanese’s “unclear allegations”.

The Labor leader had cited a number of expletive-laden outbursts and public attacks in arguing that Mr Setka “has caused, and will continue to cause, the ALP to suffer harm”.

Setka outside the Melbourne Magistrates Court last week.

“Mr Setka, through the cumulation of his actions, and the constant media attention he attracts, now brings the entire party into disrepute and I believe will continue to do so. He must be expelled from the party,” Mr Albanese wrote in a letter last week.

Today, Mr Albanese said the union leader would be granted an extension and stood by his calls for his membership to be expelled.

“If Mr Setka was a rugby league player, he would have been kicked out of his club over the revelations that have been made, he will be kicked out of the Australian Labor Party,” Mr Albanese said.

“He will be given every opportunity to put his argument before the party, as is appropriate but I am very confident that the national executive will agree with me that these values are not consistent with his remaining membership.”

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The CFMEU state secretary responded this morning, saying: “I don’t accept the allegation of damage to the party but even if Albanese was right that my membership has caused/will cause harm to the party, how does that allow the national executive to expel me?”

Mr Setka demanded “more detail” about Mr Albanese’s case to tear up his Labor membership.

@tminear