Federal Labor intervenes to dump state president

Labor’s national executive has sacked the party’s Tasmanian branch president and cancelling its state conference amid bitter infighting.

Multiple sources said Ben McGregor had on Tuesday been dumped by the party’s peak administrative body.

Labor‘s national executive has intervened in the party’s Tasmanian branch, sacking its president and cancelling its state conference, following months of bitter infighting, sources have told The Australian.

Multiple sources said Ben McGregor had on Tuesday been dumped by the party’s peak administrative body, to resolve a clash of wills between Mr McGregor and state leader Rebecca White over his position.

Mr McGregor has in recent weeks refused to cave into demands by Ms White and party state secretary Stuart Benson that he quit, following an investigation into his conduct in sending “vulgar” text messages to a woman.

In September, Mr McGregor claimed to have been “cleared” by the investigation, but Mr Benson said it had merely been dropped because the complaint did not fit within party policies.

Mr McGregor has apologised for the sending the text messages, seven years ago, but accused “reactionaries” within the ALP of orchestrating a campaign against him.

He is taking defamation action against Ms White over comments she made about his character while demanding he quit as a candidate during the May state election, after the SMS scandal broke.

The national executive‘s dramatic intervention is aimed at clearing the decks for a federal election at which three marginal seats are at stake in Tasmania.

Labor in the island state has been hopelessly divided, with warfare between the dominant Left faction and the Right, as well as between players in the Left, sabotaging its May election campaign.

Ms White was dumped as leader by Left union leaders after the poll, only to be reinstated by the parliamentary Labor Party following the resignation of union-backed replacement leader David O’Byrne over alleged inappropriate conduct.

The Health and Community Services Union, which had previously backed Mr McGregor, recently disaffiliated with state Labor in a major fracturing of the Left.

It is understood the Left faction nationally decided to abandon Mr McGregor in the interests of party unity ahead of the federal election.

Mr McGregor declined to comment but is expected to make a statement later.