Supporters of rogue Senator Fatima Payman in talks about her future for ‘weeks,’ while the PM expects she will quit Labor ‘in the coming days’

Anthony Albanese says he expects rogue Senator Fatima Payman to quit Labor within “days” amid revelations she began plotting her future beyond the party “weeks” ago.

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Anthony Albanese says he expects rogue Senator Fatima Payman to quit Labor within “days” amid revelations she began plotting her future beyond the party “weeks” before she crossed the floor to support Palestinian statehood.

Despite Ms Payman claiming as recently as Sunday she had no intention of leaving the Labor Party, it can be exclusively revealed multiple sources have confirmed supporters of the West Australian senator informally discussed the possibility, including with “preference whisperer” Glenn Druery, “weeks” before she broke ranks last Tuesday.

It comes as the Prime Minister shocked Question Time on Wednesday hinting he believed Ms Payman’s future in the government was coming to end as she had “made a decision to place herself outside the Labor Party”.

“I expect further announcements in the coming days, which will explain exactly what the strategy has been over now more than a month,” he said.

Mr Druery previously released a statement confirming he had spoken with Ms Payman in “recent days,” but on Wednesday he declined to comment on whether that discussion predated her decision to back a Greens motion recognising Palestine as a state.

Supporters of rogue Senator Fatima Payman had been speaking about her future beyond Labor before she crossed the floor. Picture: NewsWire

A political expert best known for helping Australian Motoring Enthusiast Party candidate Ricky Muir secure a Senate seat in 2013, Mr Druery also recently spoke to members of the Muslim community in Sydney after they invited his advice on “questions related to electoral strategy”.

He said this group had asked him to have “informal conversations” with Ms Payman.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese says Senator Fatima Payman’s plans had been in the making for “more than a month”. Picture: NewsWire

Mr Druery on Wednesday also declined to say if he had spoken with any of Ms Payman’s supporters about her situation prior to her crossing the floor to vote against Labor.

It is understood Mr Albanese became aware of Ms Payman’s contact with Mr Druery on Sunday, the same day the PM and his leadership team decided to indefinitely suspend her from the federal Labor caucus.

Ms Payman did not respond to a request for comment about the allegation she had been in conversations with figures outside Labor about her future in the party prior to crossing the floor to back a Greens motion recognising Palestine as a state.

Five days after her Senate move, Ms Payman told ABC’s Insiders she did “not intend on leaving” Labor as she “firmly” believed her actions reflected the party’s values.

Senator Fatima Payman was surround by her colleagues during the swearing in of Australia’s new Governor-General on Monday. Picture: NewsWire

During that same interview she vowed to cross the floor again if a pro-Palestine motion was put forward, triggering Mr Albanese summon her to the Lodge on Sunday afternoon and inform her of the suspension.

Ms Payman later angered senior Labor MPs after she claimed to have been “exiled” from the party, an accusation rejected by her colleagues who said they had reached out with offers of support.

Ms Payman has not appeared in parliament since Labor MPs and Senators unanimously endorsed her indefinite suspension from the federal caucus during a meeting on Tuesday.

The party agreed Ms Payman could return to their ranks if she showed “respect” for caucus.

Originally published as Supporters of rogue Senator Fatima Payman in talks about her future for ‘weeks,’ while the PM expects she will quit Labor ‘in the coming days’