Party rules require leadership nominations to be open for a week, but Shorten will be the only candidate, with possible frontbench changes

Labor will move in short order from a choreographed show of unity at its first caucus meeting since the election to an internal rumble about frontbench spots to be allocated in the next parliament.



Labor MPs will gather in Canberra on Friday for a caucus meeting that will effectively install Bill Shorten as the Labor leader.

Party rules require nominations for the party leadership to be opened for a week, but Shorten will be the only candidate for the position.

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Anthony Albanese, who took several days earlier this week to rule out challenging Shorten for the leadership, is expected to move a motion of support for Shorten, seconded by Labor’s deputy leader, Tanya Plibersek.

Shorten has this week been touring the country thanking voters after Labor’s stronger than expected showing at the recent election.

But behind the scenes positioning is already under way for a new cut of the Labor frontbench once the final count is concluded by the Australian Electoral Commission.

The process has not yet moved to the sharp end, because the balance between frontbench spots allocated to MPs from the right and left factions will be contingent on the final fall of the seats.

The left faction for some time has pushed for an additional frontbench spot, a move that potentially places a question mark over the future of Andrew Leigh, who is not factionally aligned.

Some in the left are also displeased with Kim Carr, the veteran Victorian senator, who is one of Shorten’s strongest supporters in the caucus – but it is unclear how forcefully the displeasure will manifest itself once factional convenors get together after the final results are known.



Shorten, in Perth on Thursday, said, regardless of the eventual election result, Labor would fight in the new parliament for its policy agenda but also work collaboratively with crossbenchers.

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He said Labor would approach the next term unified, unlike the Coalition, which this week has indulged in public recriminations about the election result.

“The count goes on nationally, we understand that, but what is very important to recognise here is that regardless of the outcome, Labor will fight in the parliament for our positive platform of standing up for Australian jobs, making sure Perth has the best possible public transport infrastructure, making sure the schools of WA are well funded and, of course, protecting Medicare from the harsh and unreasonable cuts of the Turnbull Liberal party,” Shorten said.

“We are doing all of these things and what we are also going to do to make the 45th parliament work is we will reach out and work with the independents and the crossbenchers in the parliament,” Shorten said.

“Mr Turnbull has got himself in a little bit of a bind here. Having called the election partly to get rid of independents and crossbenchers out of the parliament, he now has to go back on bended knee and say: ‘I didn’t really mean that, can I please work with you?’”