Can Victorian Premier Jacinta Allan see off what looks like her toughest challenge yet?
Labor Party factional leaders have agreed the time has come for Ms Allan to go, according to briefings to Melbourne-based political reporters over the weekend.
Exactly how is not yet clear. If she refuses to resign, which would be in keeping with her personality, Labor MPs could vote her out in a private meeting known as the caucus on Tuesday.
Her first test will come at 11am when the Cabinet meets. It is reportedly going to consider creating a new agency within the Victorian police force to pursue organised crime. The agency is seen as a response to reports of CFMEU-linked corruption within the state’s infrastructure projects known as the Big Build.
Ms Allan has resisted huge media pressure to appoint a royal commission to investigate the reports, saying it would slow down the fight against corruption.
Her refusal to have a public inquiry is an example of her leadership style. In her two years and 303 days leading the state, Ms Allan has veered between pragmatism and obstinacy.
She hasn’t hesitated to throw money at voters when it is politically expedient. But when it comes to the CFMEU, one of the defining problems of her government, she has been reluctant to bow to public pressure.
With an election scheduled for November 28, the Labor Party knows it could face defeat after 12 years in office under the unpopular Ms Allan.
The electoral outlook is complicated by One Nation’s rise. Polls show similar levels of support for Labor, the Coalition and One Nation, suggesting a hung parliament is the distinct possibility.
But One Nation has no leader in Victoria, no candidates and no policies. The Liberal Party has been beset by internal conflict for years.
If Labor elects a new leader — Deputy Premier Ben Carroll is the leading candidate — could the government resurrect itself?
Mr Carroll has previously said he would not challenge Ms Allan. But on Monday morning Age reporter Chip Le Grand quoted sources close to him who said: “He is reconsidering his position.”
Mr Carroll is from the right of the party. The Premier is from the left. Although the factional divide is not as ideological as it once was, Mr Carroll’s appointment would reset the political landscape in Victoria. It would be bad news for the Liberal Party.
