"And there's just a range of public commentary going back for a few years now that isn't consistent with Labor views and isn't consistent with the message that we want to put out there of representing all Australians." Mr Albanese later told the ABC the Labor Party had every right to expel CFMMEU Victorian boss Mr Setka from its ranks as political parties "have a right to decide who is a member". "The precedent's there, the rules are very clear," he said. But it is still unclear whether Labor could withstand a legal challenge from Mr Setka. University of Queensland constitutional law professor Graeme Orr said Mr Setka may have "shot himself in the foot" by escalating his spat with Labor on Monday.

Professor Orr said it was ironic that Mr Setka's tirade against Mr Albanese may enable his expected expulsion to stand up in court, as ALP Victoria's rules allowed for members to be expelled for disloyalty or disparaging remarks about Labor figures or the party itself. Labor leader Anthony Albanese . Credit:AAP He said Mr Setka's comments about anti-violence campaigner Rosie Batty, which Mr Albanese originally cited as the reason for his push to remove Mr Setka, would not have been enough to justify expulsion under the rules. While the rules allow for expulsion of members convicted of serious criminal offences with a jail term of five years, the charges Mr Setka is facing do not meet this threshold. While several high-profile unions have supported calls for Mr Setka to resign, hardline Victorian United Firefighter Union boss Peter Marshall backed him to remain in the top job on Monday, calling on “third parties” to butt out of construction union business.

He said Mr Setka’s tenure as branch secretary should be an internal matter between him and his union members. Loading “The position of the Victorian branch of the United Firefighters Union is that John should remain secretary and not resign, as that is clearly a matter that is decided solely by his members and not third parties,” Mr Marshall said. On Monday, Mr Setka told news website The New Daily he would challenge Mr Albanese's move to expel him from Labor. While Mr Setka has threatened to starve the Labor Party of millions of dollars worth of donations to fight the next federal election, an analysis of Australian Electoral Commission returns shows that the amount at stake may be a fraction of that claimed.

The union's Victorian branch donated $839,340 to Labor over the three years to 2016-17. The branch donated $90,894 to federal Labor in 2017-18. The spend for 2018-19 is unknown. Mr Setka was backed on Monday by another big donor to Labor, the Electrical Trades Union in Victoria, which is also threatening to withdraw its ALP payments, understood to have been worth up to $1 million in the run-up to last month's federal election. The CFMMEU's Victorian branch said in a statement on Monday that it "unanimously and unconditionally supports" Mr Setka's leadership and that members had resolved to withdraw "all financial and in-kind support to the ALP" if it expelled him. Mr Setka's warning came as more powerful unions joined the push for the resignation of the Victorian secretary of the Construction, Forestry, Maritime, Mining and Energy Union.