Joel Fitzgibbon to quit Labor shadow cabinet over climate change fight

Labor frontbencher Joel Fitzgibbon has sensationally quit Anthony Albanese’s frontbench amid an internal war in the party.

Labor frontbencher Joel Fitzgibbon has sensationally quit Anthony Albanese’s frontbench amid an internal war over the party’s climate change policy.

News.com.au has confirmed that Mr Fitzgibbon informed Mr Albanese of his decision this morning before confirming his move to colleagues at Tuesday’s ALP caucus meeting.

It follows his critics dubbing the right-wing MP the “Idiot for Hunter”.

He is expected to call a press conference later this morning, warning the party is alienating blue collar workers and there is even speculation he might one day run for leader.

While few MPs see him as a serious contender for the leadership, his departure is set to inflame divisions within the party. He is also the convenor of the powerful Right faction that traditionally determines Labor leaders.

At a press conference in Canberra, Mr Fitzgibbon would not rule out ambitions for the leadership but said he would need to be “drafted”.

“One of the regrets I have is not running for the leadership after the 2019 election. I don’t believe I would have won that contest, but I think a contest would have been good for the rank-and-file and the industrial wing of the party,’’ he said. “And it would have been an opportunity for me to develop a mandate for my determination to take the Labor Party back to its traditional roots.”

Mr Fitzgibbon later added he was being “flippant” about needing to be drafted.

“I don’t think anyone is gonna be knocking on my door. Anthony Albanese will lead the Labor Party to the next election,’’ he said.

While there’s little suggestion he’s a serious contender, the maverick MP could emerge as a stalking horse that would open the door to another contender to roll Mr Albanese as leader amid some internal criticism of his performance.

The divisions over the direction of the party, Mr Fitzgibbon warned, were not going away.

“Hundreds of thousands, if not millions, of people rely on us to form a Labor government from time to time,’’ he said.

“You know, the true definition of ‘conservatism’, of course, is to oppose change. Well, that’s alright if you’re doing just fine. But there are a lot of Australians that aren’t doing just fine, and we do have growing inequality in our country, so we need a Labor Party, a Labor government to close that gap and to speak out for the people who need a hand up.

“But, of course, we also need to talk to aspiration - those coal miners on $150,000, $200,000 a year, who have big mortgages but have worked hard, and made big decisions on behalf of their family, who can’t afford to have politicians specifically close down their industries. We’ve got to speak for them as well.”

But Mr Fitzgiboon insisted his decision to stand down from Labor’s frontbench was not a surprise.

“I told Anthony Albanese - gee, I don’t know - a number of months ago that I intended not to see Christmas as a shadow minister,’’ he said.

“So, I’ve sprung no surprise on Albo. He has been fully aware that this is coming. I do have confidence in Anthony Albanese’s leadership. He said at the Caucus that I acknowledge that we’ve had a few dust-ups in our time - not just recently, by the way. He told the Caucus we might have a beer tonight for each dust-up.”

Joel Fitzgibbon. Picture: Milan Scepanovic

The maverick MP has been involved in public stoushes with left-leaning colleagues on climate change for months and his departure follows attempts by Mr Albanese to negotiate a peace deal.

It follows his warnings that colleagues were “delusional” for thinking US President elect Joe Biden’s victory was a green light for tougher climate policies.

Last month, Mr Fitzgibbon lashed out at Labor frontbencher Mark Dreyfus suggesting he wore his criticism as a “badge of honour”.

Mr Dreyfus called Mr Fitzgibbon the “idiot for Hunter” in a meeting of the Victorian Right faction.

“I wear that as a badge of honour,” Mr Fitzgibbon told 2GB radio. “In my experience if Mark Dreyfus is criticising you, you are probably on the right track.”