PM slams Albanese as ‘gutless’ over Kitching bullying claim ahead of Labor preselection bloodbath

The Prime Minister has lashed out at Anthony Albanese over his response to bullying claims within the party, as Labor prepares for a preselection bloodbath.

Scott Morrison has slammed Labor leader Anthony Albanese as “gutless” for refusing to investigate bullying and culture problems raised by the late Senator Kimberely Kitching.

Speaking after the Labor Senator’s funeral at St Patrick’s Cathedral, the Prime Minister said it wasn’t good enough for his political opponent to reject calls for an inquiry.

”Yesterday was an important day for Kimberley Kitching’s family. And I’m pleased that she was able to be honoured in the way that she was,’’ he said.

”But that does not dismiss the fact that serious allegations have been made - not by the Liberal Party, but by members of the Labor Party, about a toxic culture within the Labor Party, which the leader of the Labor Party, Anthony Albanese, is in hiding (over) and won’t address.

“What we’ve got from Anthony Albanese at the first sign of hard questions - and we’re not even into the campaign yet - he has gone into complete hiding. Frankly, I think that it is pretty gutless.”

Anthony Albanese is rumoured to be plotting the removal Senator Carr. Picture: NewsWire/Sarah Marshall

Victorian Senator Kimberley Kitching claimed she was being bullied by other members of her party before she died of a heart attack last week, prompting calls for an investigation.

The news comes as Labor scrambles to finalise its preselections, with Victorian Labor Senator Kim Carr now facing the axe from Mr Albanese’s team, and party sources tipping millionaire Andrew Charlton to take over from retiring MP Julie Owens.

Mr Charlton, the managing director of Accenture, is regarded as a rising star of the Labor Party and a future frontbencher, but is already drawing fire from faction enemies over his private wealth, with ALP critics pointing to a $16 million house he bought in Sydney two years ago.

Labor has already faced criticism after parachuting in former NSW Premier Kristina Keneally as Labor’s candidate in Fowler, over Vietnamese-Australian lawyer Tu Le.

Labor MP for Parramatta Julie Owens announced her plans to retire to the Labor leadership team more than six months ago, but the preselection has been delayed until now with just weeks to go before an election is called.

Mr Albanese reportedly wants to parachute Accenture managing director Andrew Charlton into the Western Sydney electorate of Parramatta. Picture: YouTube

The $16 million property in Bellevue Hill owned by Accenture managing director Andrew Charlton.

It’s expected Mr Carr, a factional ally of Senator Kitching under an old power-sharing arrangement between the Left and Right in Victoria, will be challenged and replaced after a 29-year career in politics.

He is likely to be replaced by union leader Linda White, 63, who retired from the Australian Services Union three years ago but remains a member of the national executive.

Employment lawyer Josh Bornstein was also flagged as a possible contender but is not believed to be entering the contest.

A lifelong foe of Anthony Albanese, who has been in parliament for 26 years, Senator Carr was a senior frontbencher in the Rudd-Gillard governments and a power player in the leadership coups that installed Julia Gillard before switching sides to reinstall Kevin Rudd.

Senator Carr was also pivotal in the elevation of Bill Shorten as leader in 2013, deepening Mr Albanese’s antipathy towards him.

Mr Albanese has previously linked the Victorian ALP’s failure to finalise Senator Carr’s preselection with the delays to Senator Kimberley Kitching’s own electoral fate.

Andrew Landeryou, the husband of the late Senator Kimberley Kitching blasted a “cantankerous cabal” of Labor figures for the difficulties she faced before her death in a eulogy that celebrated her life and laid bare factional warfare within the ALP.

The Labor Party is apparently preparing to dump Senator Kim Carr. Picture: AAP Image/Mick Tsikas

The Victorian Senator died on March 10 after a suspected heart attack.

While he did not name any names in relation to the “unpleasantness”, it follows reports Senator Kitching dubbed Senate leader Penny Wong, deputy leader Kristina Keneally and Katy Gallagher “mean girls” because they froze her out.

The women have rejected claims she was bullied and described the claims as untrue and “hurtful.”

In the wake of her death, Ms Kitching’s supporters, including factional allies and union leaders Earl Setches and Diana Asmar, have launched contested accounts that her preselection was in peril and she was bullied before her suspected heart attack.

“I’m not going to blame any one person or any one meeting,” her husband Andrew Landeyou said, in a reference to the meeting of the Right faction 48 hours before her death that declined to endorse her preselection.

“She exemplified the courage and creativity that we all say we want from candidates for public office but on all sides we too often shun both, favouring useful idiots, obedient nudniks and bland timeservers,” he said.

“I’m so proud that Kimberley was a shining beacon of what could and what should be in our public life.”