NDIS Minister Bill Shorten says Labor’s leaders have clearly told WA senator Fatima Payman she is welcome in the party, despite her indefinite suspension from caucus today for crossing the floor to support a Greens motion calling for the recognition of a Palestinian state.
On ABC radio this morning, Shorten extended an olive branch to Payman, describing her as diligent, young, smart and tough. He said she could rejoin the party caucus when she accepted being bound by its decisions.
NDIS Minister Bill Shorten.Credit: Alex Ellinghausen
Speaking on the ABC’s Afternoon Briefing in the last hour, the senior Victorian MP and former Labor leader said the federal parliamentary party’s current leadership had made a similar point.
“I think the leadership has been clear: she is welcome,” Shorten said.
Earlier in the interview, he said: “I don’t think anyone in Labor is critical of her view about Palestine. I mean it’s a traumatic time. People are dying. We all want to see the Israeli tanks out. We want the hostages returned. But we also need to make sure we have processes where the party is cohesive. So I think a bit of time and distance can work these issues through.”
Loading
Shorten declined to comment on whether Labor’s strict caucus solidarity rules were appropriate, instead suggesting the party’s national conference was a better forum for that debate.
“If the party wants to revisit any of that, it should take its time to do that, but you wouldn’t do it just because the Greens are stirring the pot,” Shorten said.
He criticised the Greens for reportedly planning to bring a similar motion on Palestine to the Senate, putting Payman in a position where she may cross the floor again. However, Greens leader Adam Bandt has publicly stopped short of promising to bring back the same motion, but signalled it was likely as the crossbench party would put pressure on Labor every time parliament sat.
The Greens discussed bringing another motion in their party room meeting today.
“Why do they want to keep putting this resolution up?” Shorten said. “[They] know it doesn’t change anything. It’s stirring the pot, to be honest, and I don’t think it’s constructive.”