AAP
Senior Labor figures have urged caucus members seeking leadership change to "pull back" for the sake of the federal government's survival.
Cabinet minister and former Labor leader Simon Crean intervened on Thursday - the final sitting day of parliament before a seven-week break - and expressed his frustration about the internal warfare.
"You stop the stalemate by getting people to pull back, understand it is in our interests to act in a more unified way and get on with the task in presenting ourselves as an united government with a pretty scary opposition," Mr Crean told reporters in Canberra.
Mr Crean said he had not spoken to Kevin Rudd about pulling back his supporters pushing for the former prime minister to take over from Julia Gillard.
"They have to unify because it is killing us, in my view, the disunity. It has never been a good thing," he said.
Mr Crean, who has been reported as having switched his loyalty to Mr Rudd, said Labor MPs should rally behind Ms Gillard.
"The party should unite behind her as the prime minister," he said.
Communications Minister Stephen Conroy said Ms Gillard had "overwhelming support" in caucus.
"There is not going to be a leadership spill," he told reporters.
Leadership speculation spiked on Wednesday when chief government whip Joel Fitzgibbon, a key Rudd backer, said it was "stating the obvious" that there were concerns in the caucus about the prospect of an election "wipeout" in September.
He denied the numbers were being counted for a vote in the caucus, saying any suggestion of a leadership ballot between budget day and the election was a "silly concept".
Labor backbencher Graham Perrett said if caucus members were still discussing the leadership after parliament rose on Thursday then they might as well "put down our drinks and go home".
"They either need to resign or re-sign (to Gillard), one or the other," he told reporters.
Mr Perrett said Mr Fitzgibbon should reaffirm his support for the prime minister or stand down as whip.
"He needs to get on with the job of looking after the prime minister's back, that's what he's paid for," he said,
Independent MP Tony Windsor, who has supported the minority Gillard government since the 2010 election, said the current leadership jitters was a "one-way street to oblivion".
Liberal frontbencher Christopher Pyne taunted Mr Rudd, saying he had made a mockery of Ms Gillard and Labor since Mr Rudd lost the leadership in 2010.
"I think if Kevin Rudd had the numbers he'd have used them by now," Mr Pyne told reporters.
"That's what we do in politics."
A spokesman for Mr Rudd told AAP on Thursday that the former leader stood by his previous commitment, made after the failed February 2012 caucus ballot, not to challenge again.
"Regarding the Labor leadership, Mr Rudd has made his position clear in numerous media statements," the spokesman said.
"He stands by those statements."
No comments:
Post a Comment