Claws out for China critics The Wolverines in ALP talks

Labor’s shadow cabinet has been told a parliamentary anti-Chinese group called The Wolverines is ‘destructive’ to Australia-China relations.

Andrew Hastie and Kimberley Kitching with the US Ambassador Arthur B. (A.B.) Culvahouse Jr.

Labor’s shadow cabinet has been told a parliamentary anti-Chinese influence group called The Wolverines, which includes Victorian ALP right-wing senator Kimberley Kitching, was “destructive” to Australia-China relations.

The ALP parliamentary caucus has also been told The Wolverines, composed mostly of conservative Coalition MPs and senators, “adds no value” to the debate about Chinese influence.

Two former intelligence chiefs and policy leaders in the departments of Defence and Foreign ­Affairs, as well as prime ministerial advisers, were last week invited to address the parliamentary Labor groups on China.

On Monday, Allan Gyngell, former head of the Office of Nat­ional Assessments, foreign policy adviser to Paul Keating, hon­orary professor at the ANU and a board director of the China Matters institute, briefed the Labor frontbench on the need for “sensible engagement” with China.

Professor Gyngell also told a virtual meeting of the shadow cabinet that The Wolverines group was “immature, juvenile and destructive”.

Dennis Richardson, a former ambassador to Washington and head of ASIO, Defence and Foreign Affairs, addressed the ALP legal and foreign affairs caucus on Australia-China relations.

Mr Richardson, who advocates firm Australian stances on China, said in a Zoom meeting that The Wolverines ginger group of MPs and senators — including Liberal MP Andrew Hastie, who is chair of the intelligence and security committee — “adds no value” to the Australia-China debate. Mr Hastie and Senator Kitching appointed the US ambassador to Australia, Arthur Culvahouse, an “honorary” member of The ­Wolverines at a dinner at the US embassy in Canberra.

Senator Eric Abetz joins the secretive club known as the Wolverines. Picture: Supplied

On Sunday night, Michael Danby, a former Labor MP for Melbourne Ports and a former member of the parliamentary intelligence and security committee, said he did not think it was appropriate for Professor Gyngell — a representative of the “controversial” China Matters group — to ­address the ALP shadow cabinet and criticise the position of ­sections of the ALP.

Mr Danby is taking a stand in Victoria against the state Labor government’s connection with China’s Belt and Road Initiative. “It is not appropriate for lobbyists from controversial accommodate-Beijing lobbyists China Matters to comment on internal Labor differences on China,” Mr Danby said. “It reeks of someone trying to reinforce ideological conformity.”

Mr Danby did not criticise Mr Richardson. The invitation to the former senior foreign policy and intelligence leaders to address the shadow cabinet and ALP caucus comes as tensions mount within Labor over the attitude to China’s rise and influence in Australia, particularly Victoria’s signing on to Beijing’s investment vehicle, the Belt and Road Initiative.

Part of the factional divisions in the Victorian ALP branch are differences over the state government’s support for the BRI, with some right-wing unions wishing to dissociate themselves from Victoria’s action. Other Labor right-wingers believe there is increasing pressure on MPs and union ­leaders not to criticise China or the Chinese global investment through the BRI.

The conservative Shop Distributive and Allied Employees Association passed a motion at its national executive meeting in ­February declaring the union’s support for increased human rights in China. “In particular, we support the need for a free and democratic trade union movement in China,” the motion said.