Labor’s vulnerability exposed by union boss’s bomb

Michael Ravbar exposed the vulnerabilities within Queensland Labor. Picture: Annette Dew.

Before each state conference, Labor apparatchiks work feverishly behind the scenes to smooth factional conflicts so as to present a relatively united front to the public. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn’t. When the party is in government, the stakes are particularly high.

Yesterday, Left union leader Michael Ravbar threatened to force the government’s integrity “crisis” out of parliament on to this weekend’s conference floor. Until then, it was thought the most sensitive issues at the penultimate state conference before next year’s Queensland election would be Adani and euthanasia.

Ravbar had other ideas. His threats weren’t made privately but in the most public way. He led dozens of construction workers off city job sites to the gates of Parliament House, demanding Deputy Premier Jackie Trad resign.

He cited failures in the procurement process for the $5.4 billion Cross River Rail infrastructure project, the Treasurer’s signature development, and controversy about her undeclared investment property.

It’s not the first time Ravbar has lobbed a bomb at his side of politics, but the intervention is significant. He heads one of the dominant Left faction’s highest-profile unions. Trad is the parliamentary leader of the Left. Calls for her scalp are now coming from alleged allies as well as political enemies.

Annastacia Palaszczuk has tried to play down integrity issues besieging her government. For a Premier elected on a platform of accountability, she has not acted decisively. Ravbar exposed the weakness in her strategy. Labor’s enemies see a vulnerable government with a fractured leadership and are keen to strike a blow for their cause.