Grattan on Friday: We see a great deal of the Albanese government, but we don't know much about what goes on behind the scenes

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To ascend to the higher reaches of the ladder in Labor, you need to march in either the right or left battalion.

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Thursday, July 20, 2023

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To ascend to the higher reaches of the ladder in Labor, you need to march in either the right or left battalion.
Under a proportional representation system, the factions carve up all the spoils – ministries, seats, trips.
In the federal caucus, they keep the troops in line, so there are few notable breakouts.
But that doesn’t mean it should be, at least to the extent that it is.
Factions within broad-based political parties have their place in bringing together people with common views, playing an organising role, managing conflict.
Currently, Labor’s factional system works very nicely for Prime Minister Anthony Albanese (who hails from the left).
But the media know less about the entrails of decision-making than we often did before the 24-hour news cycle.