The ALP policy is gentler than the Coalition's in some ways – they will double the refugee intake, give $450 million to the UNHCR – but the controversial centrepieces remain: offshore detention and boat turnbacks.



Asked if this shows that the Labor Left's model of change from within has failed when it comes to asylum seekers, Albanese says "Not at all". He quickly jumps to criticise the position of the Greens, saying Labor was compelled to do something to stop the boats while in government.



"It wasn’t sustainable to have more than a thousand people trying to get here by boat," he says. "If the Greens got their policy up, we’ve got to look at what the consequences would be. How long that would last for, how long that would be sustainable for?"

"As much as that’s not politically advantageous for me in an electorate like Grayndler, you’ve also got to be real."



Another huge issue for the LGBTI-friendly electorate of Grayndler is same-sex marriage. I ask why Labor failed to legislate during their six years of government and Albanese sighs incredulously. "You are young, aren't you?" he says to me.