CFMMEU boss John Setka thrown a 10-day lifeline to plead his case

Militant construction union boss John Setka has been given a 10-day reprieve from being kicked out of the federal Labor Party, winning extra time to plead his case.

Militant construction union boss John Setka has been given a 10-day reprieve from being kicked out of the federal Labor Party, winning extra time to plead his case.

Labor leader Anthony Albanese announced the delay this morning but immediately ruled out any possibility the CFMMEU boss could remain a party member.

“If Mr Setka was a rugby league player, he would have been kicked out of his club over the revelations that have been made,” Mr Albanese told reporters in Canberra.

Mr Setka will now have until July 15 to present his case to the Labor national executive, which was due to rule on his party membership this Friday.

The Victorian Secretary of the Construction Forestry Maritime Mining and Energy Union was granted the extension after writing to the national executive on Friday to request a delay.

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

He asked for more time and information on the allegations against him to prepare his argument.

CFMMEU Victorian secretary John Setka (left) and wife Emma Walters speak to the media outside the Melbourne Magistrates Court last Thursday. Picture: AAP Image/Julian Smith

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Mr Albanese said he was “confident” the Labor executive would back his call for Mr Setka to be expelled from the party for his behaviour.

“It is a fact that Mr Setka pleaded guilty to very serious charges of harassment,” the Opposition leader said this morning.

“It’s also a fact that his wife Emma Walters identified herself as the victim of that harassment, that included 45 text messages that were of a nature that clearly, clearly put, I think, Mr Setka outside the principles and values that Labor holds with regards to issues of domestic violence.”

Mr Setka pleaded guilty to breaching a court order and using a carriage service to harass last Wednesday.

He was ordered to complete a men’s behavioural program, donate $1000 to an Aboriginal legal service and be on good behaviour for 12 months.

The charges related to a complaint his wife made on Boxing Day regarding a string of abusive text messages and phone calls Mr Setka had made to her.

The union boss is refusing to step down from the CFMMEU, putting the union at odds with Labor as the party attempts to rebuild following its shock election loss.