Labor has recruited the high-profile former president of the Australian Medical Association Brian Owler to run in the Sydney seat of Bennelong at the next federal election in an effort to tip out the former tennis pro, the Liberal John Alexander.

Owler told journalists on Monday he had thought carefully about the decision to go into federal politics but had resolved to put his hand up: “I believe that people need to step forward if we are going to see a Shorten Labor government elected.”

The prominent neurosurgeon, while president of the AMA, engaged in public advocacy on behalf of refugees in offshore detention, and has been active in lobbying for voluntary assisted dying.

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He became a supporter of voluntary assisted dying after his father endured a terrible death after suffering dementia, and provided technical advice to the Andrews government in Victoria about its euthanasia regime before lobbying in the federal sphere.

Owler said he had long defended Medicare “against the constant attacks from a Liberal Coalition government” and Labor had “responsible policies for the future” in areas including climate change and energy.

He said he believed Australians were “sick and tired of not having their opinions listened to” and the rolling division within the Liberal party “was really the last straw”.

Owler said winning the seat would be an “enormous task” but he would do everything he could “to make sure that the people of Bennelong have a strong voice in Canberra and I’m going to do everything that I can to make sure that we elect a Shorten Labor government at the next election”.

Labor tried to prise the seat away from Alexander during a byelection last December triggered by the dual citizenship imbroglio, recruiting the former New South Wales premier Kristina Keneally. The attempt failed.

Keneally, now in the Senate, welcomed news of Owler’s recruitment on Monday.

Kristina Keneally (@KKeneally) Delighted and excited that @BrianOwler is running for Labor in Bennelong. He will make a great representative for the area, & a terrific MP. Dr Owler is a strong supporter of Medicare. He will stand up for equal access to health & education, and for fairness in our community.

Labor’s Bennelong campaign last year, headed by Keneally as star recruit, yielded a single-digit negative swing against the Liberals, but the Wentworth byelection in Sydney’s eastern suburbs triggered a swing against the Liberals of more than 19%.

Wentworth has been picked up by another high-profile former AMA president, Kerryn Phelps, who ran as an independent against the Liberal, Dave Sharma, after Malcolm Turnbull resigned from parliament after losing the prime ministership.

The federal Labor leader, Bill Shorten, told reporters Bennelong was a hard seat for Labor to win. “Whilst Brian Owler brings a lifetime of standing up for people, he hasn’t sought to go into some safe seat.

“Bennelong is a Coalition seat. It’s hard to win. Very hard to win.

“But just think that shows how fair dinkum he is. The reality is that he wants to do his apprenticeship. He wants to put his case to the people.”

Shorten characterised Alexander – who has built up a personal margin in the seat – as “a nice person” but claimed his heart wasn’t in it.

He said the residents of Bennelong needed a representative with “a bit of energy” and that’s what Owler would bring.