Labor leader Bill Shorten's moment of truth before the royal commission into trade unions has been brought forward to July 8, and the federal opposition leader is likely to appear more than once.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
On Thursday Commissioner Dyson Heydon agreed to the request from Mr Shorten's lawyers to bring forward his appearance in what is widely seen as a move designed to limit political damage to the federal Opposition Leader.
Labor MPs said they were closely monitoring developments, with one suggesting – before the date was brought forward - that Mr Shorten faces "death by a thousand cuts" as speculation grew about his time as head of the Australian Workers Union.
The dramatic developments came a day after the political and business elite gathered in the federal parliament for the annual mid-winter ball dinner, an off-the-record event that raises money for charity each June.
Former Labor leaders Kevin Rudd and Julia Gillard were both removed by colleagues a week after the mid-winter balls held in June 2010 and June 2013.
Mr Shorten's standing with colleagues has not deteriorated to that point, but revelations published by Fairfax Media late on Wednesday that Mr Shorten's old union was paid nearly $300,000 on his watch under a workplace deal that cut conditions and saved Thiess John Holland as much as $100 million on the $2.5 billion East Link tollway in Melbourne back in 2005 were the subject of intense discussion on the night.
One Labor MP, who asked not to be named, neatly summarised the view of some in the caucus about the latest revelations when he said most MPs doubted Mr Shorten's pending royal commission appearance would throw up a specific "gotcha moment".
But the question Labor MPs were pondering on Thursday was, he said, "could this be death by a thousands cuts?" for Mr Shorten.
Another Labor source said Mr Rudd's revamped Labor Party rules had buttressed the Opposition Leader's position. While there were "some nervous people, it's not the central point of conversation".
Other Labor MPs contacted by Fairfax Media described the royal commission as a political witch-hunt and several of the Opposition Leader's front bench colleagues, including Victorian Right faction allies and shadow ministers Richard Marles and Mark Dreyfus, as well as NSW power broker Sam Dastyari, stoutly defended their leader.
Mr Marles dismissed suggestions the Mr Shorten's leadership could be in peril, declaring "I have heard none of that" and declared the Thiess John Holland deal was "exactly how enterprise bargaining was supposed to work".
"This was an agreement which paid record rates, record rates for an urban construction project in Australia. This was an agreement which had an impeccable safety record and no industrial action. This was an agreement which delivered a fundamental piece of infrastructure to the Victorian people ahead of time. This was an agreement where everyone won," he said.
In question time, leader of the house Christopher Pyne pressed Mr Shorten for details of another deal struck with builders Winslow Constructors, a $2000 donation from the Industry 2020 slush fund made by factional ally Cesar Melhem to the Maribyrnong campaign in 2009 and the Thiess John Holland deal.
"These are matters that are within the knowledge of the Leader of the Opposition. And that's why he needs to answer those questions. He can't wait until August...why can't the Leader of the Opposition answer them today?" Mr Pyne said.
On Thursday, no past or present union movement would voice support of Mr Shorten when contacted by Fairfax Media.
The Australian Council of Trade Unions declined to comment on Mr Shorten's dealings within the AWU, as did the leadership of the CFMEU and several other prominent union figures.
The letter from Mr Shorten's lawyers to the commission asked for his appearance to be brought forward "
The commission said its preference had been to "address all matters concerning Mr Shorten in one sitting. However, given Mr Shorten's request to bring his examination forward by several months, this will now not be possible" and added that "any person affected by Mr Shorten's evidence will be able to apply for authorisation to cross examine him at a later date".
The political tactics of the Shorten opposition have also come under scrutiny in the last week after the ALP's decision to block the government's changes to the pensions asset test - which opened the way to a Coalition-Greens deal to save $2.4 billion - left Labor isolated.
The June Fairfax Ipsos poll published Monday showed Labor enjoyed a healthy 53-47 lead over the Coalition in the two party-preferred vote, but Mr Shorten only just led Mr Abbott as preferred prime minister, 42 per cent to 41 per cent. He trailed Mr Abbott 39 per cent to 44 per cent last month.
A year ago, Mr Shorten led Mr Abbott by 47 per cent to 40 per cent and after the May 2014 budget, had a whopping 51 per cent to 40 per cent lead.
with Nick Toscano
