Backroom Baz: Shiny school prefect days long gone for CFMEU hotshot

He claims to be a champion of the working class but CFMEU national secretary Zach Smith was once a shiny-shoed prefect at an elite Victorian private school.

CFMEU national secretary, Zach Smith was front and centre this week trying to steady the helm as the Victorian branch’s open industry secrets were aired publicly, so, naturally, Labor types started their background digging.

Cue a photo of Smith in his school days at Gippsland Grammar doing the rounds and conspiracy theories running rampant about his political ties to Victorian Labor.

Smith, a long-time member of socialist left faction rose through the young Labor ranks and is a key ally of Socialist Left heavyweight CFMEU Manufacturing boss Michael O’Connor - so he’ll have his work cut out for him in building trust with a membership loyal to John Setka, especially if there’s any issues with the huge EBA agreement yet to be signed off.

Will Baz see the Gippsland Grammar man visiting Victorian sites in the bid to build some rapport with the workers and clean-out delegate bikies? Watch this space.

Zach Smith during his time at Gippsland Grammar Picture: Supplied

Melbourne Lord Mayor channels Dan in (spin) doctoring

Lord Mayor Nick Reece is certainly not holding back when it comes to campaigning for re-election come October. He’s hired the whiz-bang team behind Daniel Andrews’ success and has been bombarding his huge network of movers and shakers with messaging about why he’s the man for the job.

Nicholas Reece. Picture: David Caird

This week he announced that, if successful, he would create Melbourne 3000, a new board to focus on business, major developments, events and culture. He’ll also hold a summit, M2050, with 1,000 Melburnians invited to take part to discuss city-shaping ideas. How niche. Except, they’re not. They’re virtually carbon copies of the citizens assembly policy of his former boss, Julia Gillard, and the Australia 2020 summit, spearheaded by Kevin Rudd. Talk about everything old being new again.

Liberal Party membership a sinking ship or sailing vessel?

They say numbers don’t lie. Which could come as quite a relief to Victorian Liberal leader John Pesutto who, let’s be honest, has done his fair share of counting during his parliamentary life, being on both the winning and losing end of the numbers.

Like the 330 votes saw him booted from parliament after just one term in 2018, then the 1544 that saw him win his seat of Hawthorn back in 2022.

John Pesutto. Picture: David Crosling

There’s the number one, which is how many more of his colleagues voted for him to be leader compared to his challenger Brad Battin. Some new numbers out this week might just have put a spring in Pesutto’s step amid ongoing concerns within the party that his ongoing legal stoush with exiled MP Moira Deeming is damaging the party brand.

And while it’s true, the party lost a huge chunk of members over the issue early last year, they’ve reportedly come back in droves. Baz’s spies say reports to the party’s administrative committee this week showed a strong uptick in new members from December, with renewals at 92 per cent, a stark increase on last year’s 77 per cent.

“It was the strongest renewal season in about four years,” one well placed source said. All told, membership is reportedly up about 900 compared to the same time last year. Now they’re some numbers worth banking.

Baz’s best wishes for Foster

Baz is sending only good wishes to Labor MP Eden Foster this week after she revealed a Stage 1 cancer diagnosis. Foster has hit the ground running since winning the seat of Mulgrave in the by-election sparked by the shock resignation of former premier Daniel Andrews.

“I have caught this early, and the prognosis is good,” Foster said this week. “I am determined to fight and win this battle and will shortly start chemotherapy. While being diagnosed with cancer is a shock, I hope my diagnosis can serve as a reminder that cancer can touch everyone, no matter your age.”

Here’s to a speedy recovery, Eden

Victoria royally snubbed

Another blow to Victoria this week, with King Charles and the good wife Queen Camilla snubbing the state in their upcoming Australian visit.

The royal couple will head to NSW and the ACT instead with Jacinta Allan and her government remaining tight lipped this week about just what was included in our pitch to lure the new monarch on his first trip here as King.

Premier Jacinta Allan. Picture: Ian Currie

Allan refused to go into details about what the bid involved, saying discussions with the palace are “not necessarily ones that should be disclosed”. She did however note that the King’s “deep connection” to Victoria through his schooling at Geelong Grammar School’s Timbertop campus in 1966 had been discussed.

Baz reckons Charles would have had a hoot here. A verified train lover, he could have toured the imaginary Melbourne Airport Rail, or maybe even given the royal nod to the Suburban Rail Loop, ending controversy over the project once and for all.

He could have had a word with republican governor Margaret Gardner too, perhaps, to see if he couldn’t convince her to back him in a little more. The royal visit will be the first of reigning monarchs since the late Queen Elizabeth’s trip in 2011.

Guess who?

Which Liberal MP had tongues wagging this week over claims they were quietly canvassing for a run at the party’s leadership?

Overheard

“Victorians deserve a Royal Commission to expose the full extent of CFMEU corruption in Victoria and the complicity of the Allan Labor Government in protecting it.” Shadow Attorney-General Michael O’Brien calls for Jacinta Allan to get tough on allegations of union criminality on government work sites.