Will the evolution of Labor’s left from firebrands to centrists define Albanese’s leadership?

The party’s activist wing has probably never held such power, yet the PM offers uncritical support for Aukus and refuses to criticise Trump’s acts of war What are we here for? Labor faces defining test of its reform appetite Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates Get our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcast Standing inside Victorian Trades Hall in inner-city Melbourne, the leftwing Labor firebrand Doug Cameron unleashed a withering attack on his faction’s federal MPs. Where are the “peace activists in the caucus”, the former New South Wales senator raged, and why have MPs allowed themselves to be “defanged and co-opted” into supporting US military aggression? He contrasted their approach to the leftwing revolt in 1985 that forced the then prime minister, Bob Hawke, to retreat from plans to allow US missile testing in the Tasman Sea. “The left parliamentary caucus used to reflect the views of the progressive rank-and-file; they acted as the party’s conscience,” Cameron said in the 2025 Carmichael Lecture, an annual oration given in honour of the trade unionist Laurie Carmichael. “Those days seem to be long gone.” The speech, muc