Labor party crisis: Anthony Albanese counsels Anthony Byrne over explosive texts

Scott Morrison says it’s up to the Opposition Leader if Anthony Byrne should continue to serve on a powerful parliamentary committee.

Scott Morrison has labelled embattled Labor MP’ Anthony Byrne’s grip on the powerful parliamentary security and intelligence committee a test for Anthony Albanese’s leadership.

The Australian has revealed Mr Byrne has written a swath of explosive texts attacking his Labor colleagues, including Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews and former ALP leader Bill Shorten.

The bugging of Mr Byrne’s office – supplying images for a Nine 60 Minutes report which cost Labor powerbroker Adem Somyurek his ALP membership – has raised concerns about his handling of important security and intelligence matters he deals with regularly as deputy chairman of the PJCIS.

Mr Morrison said it was up to the Opposition Leader whether Mr Byrne should continue to serve on the powerful committee and warned Mr Byrne’s actions had “very serious implications”.

“I would take a recommendation from the Leader of the Opposition as to who he believes should be serving on that committee in the first instance. And I would like to see what his recommendation would be,” he said.

“There are very serious implications … This is an important committee. A very important committee, which facilitates, on occasion, bipartisanship on important national security issues

“It really is a test for Mr Albanese as to whether he thinks Mr Byrne should continue to serve on that committee.”

MPs respond to Byrne texts

A senior Andrews government Minister attacked in the leaked texts said Mr Byrne had always been “friendly” face-to-face.

Mr Byrne texted disgraced former ALP powerbroker Adem Somyurek saying of Jobs Minister Martin Pakula: “He needs to be driven out of Parliament”

“I saw he had something to say about me,” Mr Pakula said on Thursday when asked about the messages.

“He’s always been someone who’s been friendly to my face, so I suppose that tells you something about him.”

Asked whether he was worried there may be further leaking of embarrassing text exchanges, Mr Pakula said: “Those questions really need to be directed to the people who are involved in that.”

“I think it would be obviously preferable for everybody if people took a step back, and I’m hoping that’s what will happen,” he said.

Mr Pakula’s colleague in the non-Somyurek Right of the Victorian ALP, Treasurer Tim Pallas, said it was “ultimately up to Mr Somyurek and others how they choose to defend themselves or explain themselves.”

Asked whether he was concerned about his own text message history with Mr Somyurek, Mr Pallas said: “I’ve never hidden the fact that I do on occasion work blue, but I would make the point that there’s a big difference between colourful language and indeed, misogynistic, homophobic and intimidating language. They fall into entirely different categories.”

Hutchins back as Andrews reshuffles cabinet

Former Andrews government minister Natalie Hutchins has re-entered cabinet amid a reshuffle following the departure of three ministers embroiled in the branch-stacking scandal.

Ms Hutchins, who is aligned with the AWU Right faction of the Labor Party, joins upper house president Shaun Leane and Mr Andrews’ parliamentary secretary Danny Pearson in being promoted.

Ms Hutchins — former minister for industrial relations, aboriginal affairs, women and the prevention of family violence left the ministry in 2018 for family reasons, following the death after a long battle with cancer of her husband, former NSW senator Steve Hutchins.

Announcing her return to cabinet, Premier Daniel Andrews praised Ms Hutchins for her “courage and conviction”.

“Our government has always been resolute in our commitment to meaningful equality, and I understand that all too often when women take a step back, they don’t get another opportunity,” Mr Andrews said.

Mr Leane’s elevation came after he stood down as upper House president on Thursday afternoon.

His promotion was met with derision by the state opposition.

Coalition frontbencher Tim Smith tweeted photographs of Mr Leane, who is known for his undercut and ponytail hairstyle, in which the new member of Mr Andrews’ cabinet is wearing pigtails.

“Victorian taxpayers!” Mr Smith wrote. “The clown pictured below is about to become a Minister in Chairman Dan’s regime.

Victorian taxpayers !

The clown 🤡 pictured below is about to become a Minister in Chairman Dan’s regime.

His name is Shaun Leane.

He will be paid a base salary of $352,000.

I’m sure this must reassure everyone that this corrupt government is in good hands... pic.twitter.com/XmCUXIO4um

— Tim Smith MP (@TimSmithMP) June 18, 2020

Mr Leane tweeted the photographs of himself at the height of COVID-19 lockdown in April, writing: “Today I’ve been running a new hairdo past my cell mate. The feedback has been a bit inconsistent.”

Today I’ve been running a new hairdo past my cell mate

The feedback has been a bit inconsistent pic.twitter.com/Mp5UGe77ox

— Shaun Leane (@ShaunLeaneMP) April 5, 2020

The role of Legislative Council President has been handed to Nazih Elasmar, a close factional ally of disgraced former ministers Adem Somyurek, Marlene Kairouz and Robin Scott.

Mr Elasmar has been in parliament since 2006, serving briefly as upper house deputy president for six months in 2018, but otherwise sitting on the backbench.

Mr Leane, a former electrician and Electrical Trades Union delegate, also entered parliament in 2006 and served as a parliamentary secretary before being made upper house president after the 2018 election. He is a member of the non-Somyurek Right of the Labor Party.

On Monday, Mr Andrews announced he would appoint Mr Pearson, from the AWU-aligned Right, as a replacement for Mr Somyurek.

Then it emerged that his appointment would breach a Victorian constitutional requirement for there to be no more than 17 lower house MPs in cabinet.

Subsequent resignations of Mr Scott later on Monday and Ms Kairouz early on Tuesday further complicated the issue, as did suggestions Mr Pearson may be conflicted as a local government minister given his wife is a Moonee Valley councillor.

Mr Pearson is a former chairman of the Public Accounts and Estimates Committee and has played a key role in the Belt and Road Initiative deal with China as parliamentary secretary to the Premier.

“Over the course of his career, Danny has proven himself as a passionate advocate for progressive values – and a passionate believer in the power of government to change lives. I know he will bring that same energy and enthusiasm

to his portfolios,” Mr Andrews said.

“Portfolios will be assigned in the coming days.”

On Thursday morning, Mr Andrews dismissed the notion that he would have to fill the three positions with MPs from the Right of the ALP, given Mr Somyurek, Ms Kairouz and Mr Scott were from the Right.

“No. I see them slightly differently,” said Mr Andrews, who is from the Socialist Left.

“I see them as positions in the cabinet to work hard every day for the people of Victoria. They’re positions in a Labor ministry.”

Albanese ‘counselled’ Byrne

Earlier on Thursday, Mr Albanese backed Mr Byrne to remain PJCIS deputy chairman.

Mr Albanese said he “counselled” Mr Byrne over his texts and sought assurances he acted legally, following the bugging of his office.

Deputy Chair of Parliamentary Joint Committee on Intelligence and Security Anthony Byrne.

Mr Andrews said Mr Byrne’s text messages “speak for themselves” and were self-evidently inappropriate.

Asked whether Mr Byrne should consider his position in federal parliament, Mr Andrews said that was a matter for Mr Byrne and federal Labor leader Anthony Albanese.

“He’s not part of my team, so again I think his text messages speak for themselves and I’m not particularly interested in talking about those text messages any more,” Mr Andrews said.

Asked whether the messages were reflective of the culture within the Victorian Labor Party, Mr Andrews said he did not agree that they were.

“I think they are self-evident, they’re quite obviously inappropriate, and I really don’t have any interest in offering any comment beyond that,” he said.

Asked whether he was concerned about the possibility of further correspondence between Mr Somyurek and his former Victorian ALP colleagues being made public in coming days, Mr Andrews said: “I was concerned to sack Adem Somyurek, I was concerned to expel Adem Somyurek, and that’s the end of my concerns in relation to Adem Somyurek.”

The Opposition Leader said on Thursday morning that Mr Byrne’s texts were unacceptable, but backed him to remain the deputy chairman of the parliament’s powerful security committee.

“I sought an assurance from him that he had advice — which he has — that he acted legally at all times,” Mr Albanese said in Canberra.

“He also assured me he was offering full co-operation with IBAC and the Victorian Police inquiry. These comments are completely unacceptable and inappropriate. And I’ve counselled Mr Byrne about his language and the inappropriateness of those comments.”

When asked if Mr Byrne should stay as the deputy chair of the joint parliamentary committee on security and intelligence, Mr Albanese praised his work and said: “He is the deputy chair”.

Federal Labor MP Anthony Byrne also attacked one former NSW powerbroker as a “crooked, corrupt f. k’’ and dismissed his federal colleagues as lacking the “judgment, understanding and intelligence’’ of ousted Victorian minister Adem Somyurek.

Among dozens of text messages sent by Mr Byrne to his longtime friend Mr Somyurek over a two-year period, the federal MP describes a female Labor figure as a “ratf. ker’’.

In other texts, Mr Byrne threatens to “dynamite’’ Left-faction attempts to recruit Afghans and asks Mr Somyurek to meet an “Indian kid’’ who “clearly can recruit’’.

The Prime Minister told Sydney’s 2GB radio — using Mr Byrne’s own words — that the conduct in the branch stacking scandal was corrupt and accused Mr Albanese of losing control of his party.

“What this is was described by Anthony Byrne himself as corruption … this has gone to corruption, this is what Anthony Byrne,” he said.

“It’s 10 years since the Julia Gillard-Kevin Rudd blowup here in Canberra and ten years later, they’re still doing it. They haven’t changed, they’re still doing it.”