LABOR will give its Senate preferences to the Greens in every territory and state except Queensland in a move that has angered the ALP in Victoria.

This morning the party’s National Executive ordered every State Division except Queensland to preference the Greens “number two” on the ALP’s Senate tickets across Australia.

Labor in Queensland will instead give its preferences to Bob Katter’s Katter Australia Party.

The party’s preference tickets, which were lodged with the AEC at midday, will mean that Labor preferences are likely to help elect Green Senators in every state and the ACT, except Queensland.

The move has caused widespread anger across the ALP in Victoria where the party is fighting to regain the seat of Melbourne from the Greens.

Labor sources said they feared the move will be a boon to the Coalition who will be able to argue that ''a vote for Labor is a vote for the Greens''.

''We are in a bare-knuckled fist fight with the Greens in Victoria and this decision out of Sydney and Brisbane is bewildering,'' a senior ALP figure said.

The Victorian ALP’s federal campaign committee which also met this morning rather than endorse the directive, simply ''noted'' it.

ALP State Secretary Noah Carroll declined to comment on the move, directing all questions to the ALP National Secretary George Wright.

Opposition Leader Tony Abbott said the decision was designed to preserve Mr Rudd's own job and put politics above job creation for Australians.

"This is a betrayal of the decent working people of our country," Mr Abbott said.

"I think there would be lots of decent working people right around our country who would be shaking their heads in shame and embarrassment at yet another squalid deal with a party that is not interested in jobs."

''This is a sign that Kevin Rudd has put politics above jobs, he has put his own job survival above expanding jobs for the people of Australia.

''Let's just ask ourselves what do the Greens stand for: they want to close down the forestry industry, they want to close down the fishing industry, they want to close down the coal industry, they have tried to close down the live cattle trade.

''This is the Party that Mr Rudd is giving his second preferences to.''

At the last Federal Election Labor, preferenced the Greens across Australia but the Victorian branch had argued vigorously that the party should not preference them at this election.

- with Lauren Novak and Lanai Scarr