‘Sharpening their knives’: ALP Right fury at Richard Marles over his moves to axe Ed Husic, Mark Dreyfus

Outgoing frontbencher Ed Husic believes his support for Palestine and criticisms of Israel were among the reasons he lost his spot in the second-term Albanese cabinet.

Former Labor cabinet minister Ed Husic on ABC Insiders on Sunday. Picture: ABC

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Members of Labor’s Right faction are furious over the treatment of outgoing ministers Ed Husic and Mark Dreyfus, with MPs warning there will now be those “in the background sharpening their knives” and waiting to take down factional powerbroker Richard Marles.

Due to sit down with the Prime Minister on Monday, Mr Husic on Sunday explosively claimed the Prime Minister should have intervened to save him, and that Mr Marles is a “factional assassin”, and he also said Labor’s first-term economic agenda had been shackled by “timidity”.

After openly calling for company tax cuts and receiving the backing of former prime minister Paul Keating after his axing, Mr Husic on Sunday warned he would be pushing Jim Chalmers and Anthony Albanese to pursue a “growth agenda” with Labor’s second-term mega majority.

“I think having that growth agenda for the long term is crucial for the good of the nation, and we should consider a wide range of options,” Mr Husic said.

“More than anything, we need to burn through the timidity that shackled us. We need to make big changes in a world changing fast to ensure the country stands on its own two feet, very important. There should be a number of things considered.”

The infighting comes ahead of Mr Albanese announcing his new ministry on Monday. Queensland senator Murray Watt and Communications Minister Michelle Rowland are considered frontrunners to be the next attorney-general. Mr Albanese’s close friend and Left faction ally, Tim Ayres, is expected to take a senior spot such as industry minister.

Western Australians are also lobbying to be better represented in cabinet, with Early Childhood Education Minister Anne Aly the most likely to be promoted.

Questions remain over who will take over management of the National Disability Insurance Scheme and the rollout of Labor’s aged-care reforms, with incumbent Aged Care Minister Anika Wells seen as a rising star of the party and due for a change in portfolio.

Many Labor MPs believe Tanya Plibersek should be shifted from the environment portfolio to a different role, following the failure to progress nature positive laws and the saga over Tasmania’s salmon farming industry.

But excitement ahead of what is widely expected to be a “modest” ministerial refresh has been tainted by ongoing discontent over the “undignified” ousting of Mr Husic and Mr Dreyfus, demoted as part of factional deals last week.

“For them to be knifed like that is disgraceful,” one Right faction MP said.

Another Right faction source said there were “a lot of people very unhappy” in particular with the treatment of Mr Dreyfus, who was not given the chance for a “dignified exit” like Linda Burney, Bill Shorten or Brendan O’Connor – all of whom announced their retirements on their own terms.

“You don’t shoot someone and carry the body out like that, especially for someone who’s been in parliament and in the movement for such a long time,” one MP said.

“There will be a lot of people now in the background sharpening their knives, just waiting to go for Richard (Marles) and co.”

Deputy Prime Minister Richard Marles. Picture: NewsWire / Martin Ollman

While Mr Dreyfus appeared in Labor’s caucus meeting last week, Mr Husic – who stepped back from the frontbench once before to make room for Kristina Keneally – was notably absent.

The western Sydney MP on Sunday unleashed on Mr Marles.

“I think people, when they look at a Deputy Prime Minister, they expect to see a statesman, not a factional assassin,” Mr Husic told ABC.

“The difficult issue here is that we’ve had barefaced ambition and a Deputy Prime Minister wield a factional club to reshape the ministry.”

Mr Marles was contacted for comment.

When asked if he thought Mr Albanese should have gotten involved and stopped the knifing of two senior Right faction ministers, Mr Husic said: “Of course.”

“We did speak yesterday. He rang me yesterday. We’re catching up Monday,” Mr Husic said. I look forward to that being a constructive discussion that talks about the role that I can keep playing and being able to speak up on the things I think are important and that I care about and represent people in the community,” he said.

Asked if they talked about his future or if he received any thanks for three years in the ministry, Mr Husic repeatedly refused to say.

Anthony Albanese speaks, as Ed Husic looks on. Picture: NewsWire/Philip Gostelow

“It was a very quick call. No doubt we will chat about things on Monday,” Mr Husic said.

He also argued that his outspoken views on Gaza were a “factor” in the decision to boot him from the ministry, and on Sunday took full advantage of no longer being on the frontbench to ramp up his criticism of Israel.

“We’ve seen just in the past week or so the Israeli parliament say it wants to annex Gaza, and effectively that is a form of ethnic cleansing,” Mr Husic said, in the strongest comments yet from any sitting Labor MP on the Middle East conflict.

“We’ve seen the starvation of its people through the failure to provide humanitarian assistance. (Israel) should be held to account. Starvation is a war crime.”

Ed Husic is a victim of Labor factional dealmaking. Picture: NCA NewsWire / Martin Ollman

Australian Federation of Islamic Councils president Rateb Jneid called on Mr Albanese to give a “clear explanation” as to why he didn’t intervene to save the government’s most senior Muslim minister, declaring “any perception that principled voices are being punished will be received very poorly”.

Despite Mr Husic’s comments on the Netanyahu government, Jewish peak bodies lauded him as a “moderate, sensible voice” in the debate over the Middle East.

“It is no secret that he has had different views from the Jewish community on some aspects of the Israel-Palestinian conflict, but there was never a time that we could not discuss these differences with him in a sincere and mutually respectful manner,” Executive Council of Australian Jewry president Daniel Aghion said.

“As the first Muslim to be elected to federal parliament, as well as the first Muslim to be made a minister in the Australian government, he has set a high bar for anyone seeking to follow in his footsteps.

“His dealings with the Jewish community have always been honourable, and a model of how Australians of Jewish and Muslim background should engage with one another.”

Despite his criticism of Mr Marles, members of the NSW and Victorian Labor Right factions said Mr Husic’s comments on Sunday were “pretty accurate” and “measured”.

And while Mr Husic had taken the opportunity to air his uncensored views, colleagues denied the former minister would now be a “loose cannon” on Labor’s backbench, given the expectation he would make eventually a return to the ministry.