‘Pull their heads in’: Bill Shorten responds to Joel Fitzgibbon’s Labor rebellion

Labor has been forced to respond to growing discontent amid Joel Fitzgibbon’s threats, declaring ‘division doesn’t look good’.

Former opposition leader Bill Shorten has called for his colleagues demanding Joel Fitzgibbon be booted from the party to “pull their heads in” after the Labor Party was rocked by an embarrassing by-election in NSW.

The demand comes after Mr Fitzgibbon threatened to abandon the party, insisting Saturday’s dismal result in the Upper Hunter was a reflection of the working class ditching the Labor Party in favour of the Liberal-Nationals Coalition.

Mr Shorten was pressed about the uneasiness among the ranks and asked directly if Mr Fitzgibbon should be booted from the party.

“In terms of Joel, I think it should be fixed,” the former party leader told Nine’s Today on Tuesday morning.

“I don't think he should leave the Labor Party, I think it would be better if the issues were being sorted out in-house – division doesn’t look good.

“On the other hand, some of the people trying to goad him to leave should pull their heads in.”

The declaration comes after Mr Fitzgibbon described the result in the Upper Hunter as “diabolic” and a “real wake-up call” for the opposition as the federal election looms.

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Joel Fitzgibbon has delivered threats to the Labor Party after the Upper Hunter loss. Picture: NCA NewsWire / Gary Ramage

The federal member for Hunter said the party was being abandoned by the working class because of its reluctance to support the coalmining industry.

He said Labor risked leaking votes to Scott Morrison’s Coalition in regional areas that relied on extractive industries, particularly in the Hunter and throughout the key battleground of Queensland.

“The Labor brand is in trouble, and if you’re not careful, it will go the way of the Kodak brand,” Mr Fitzgibbon told Nine’s Today on Monday morning.

“Working people walked away from us some time ago and clearly haven’t come back, and they won't come back until we clearly tell them that our main priority as a party is jobs and job security.

“In places like the Hunter Region, you can‘t have jobs and job security if you are not clearly in support of the coalmining industry. It’s important to so many families, and their suspicious of us.”

Despite the by-election being triggered amid sexual assault allegations against former Nationals member Michael Johnson, his replacement, Dave Layzell, cruised to victory in the Saturday poll with a two-party-preferred swing towards the Nationals.

The Prime Minister is expected to view the result as validation his conservative party represents Australia’s middle class and will target regional areas and outer suburbs to retain power.

Mr Fitzgibbon, who was removed from the shadow cabinet last year following fierce disagreements with Anthony Albanese over climate change policies, pleaded with his party to vocally support the mining sector.

He called on the Opposition Leader to adopt a similar line to Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk, who held onto power in the Sunshine State in October.

“Coal is our second biggest export,” Mr Fitzgibbon told the ABC. “So it would be silly to suggest that the Labor Party does not support that export industry. The curious thing is that we do.”