Steve Dimopoulos, the member for Oakleigh could be a new minister in a refreshed Dan Andrews Victorian Government as early as Saturday.
Four cabinet ministers officially announced their retirement on Friday, after their decision to retire became media speculation on Thursday.
Deputy Premier, James Merlino, the Health Minister, Martin Foley, Sport Minister Martin Pakula, and Police Minister Lisa Neville will not contest the November state elections.
Victorian Deputy Premier James Merlino to retire in November. Photo: AAP/Joel Carrett
Victorian Health Minister Martin Foley retiring in November. Photo: AAP/Diego Fedele
Victorian Minister for Tourism Sport and Major Events Martin Pakula set to retire. Photo: AAP/Joel Carrett
Victorian Police Minister Lisa Neville is one of the misters retiring this November. Photo: AAP/James Ross
Labor caucus will convene on Saturday to elect a deputy leader, and Mr Dimopoulos from Labor’s right faction, is working to garner numbers.
The president of the Greek Community of Melbourne, Bill Papastergiadis said Mr Dimopoulos was a “hard worker who deserves a ministerial appointment.”
“Steve [Dimopoulos] has worked closely with the Greek Community [of Melbourne, Victoria] on many initiatives. Our recent collaboration was on Open Horizons exhibition, and he was highly engaged and built community support for the Museum and the exhibition,” Mr Papastergiadis said to Neos Kosmos.
At a media conference on Friday, Mr Andrews rejected an accusation that he “either did not know what was going on in his party or lied” about the retirements when asked early in the week.
“I am focused on thanking and congratulating those have given so much” the premier said.
“This was an outstanding leadership team” and five new ministers will come from a “caucus with depth of talent.”
Neos Kosmos talked to a former senior Labor figure on the condition of anonymity. The source said there was “no internal factionalism.”
“Daniel is dominant, and he’s kept a lid on divisions, and those hostile to him have all moved on,” the source said.
“State politics has changed, it is more about service delivery now, there isn’t much light between left and the right of the party,” the source said.
Mr Merlino, who was often touted as the future premier, “had lost interest.”
The right aligned Shop, Distributive and Allied Employees’ Association (SDA), an off-shoot of the old Catholic right of Labor, had his back in the leadership group, “but they will replace their own, and they’ve done well at a preselection.”
The source put the retirements down to “fatigue” especially after two years of COVID and lockdowns.
“Martin [Foley] is tired, he’s had health portfolio and that was huge, he is a solid performer, but he’s just had enough.”
Mr Foley’s seat, Albert Park was once working class, but now boasts one of the highest annual incomes in the state, “and is no longer natural Labor territory.”
The election in November will be a tester of Dan Andrew’s management of COVID, especially the lockdowns.
There is anger in corridors from Pascoe Vale to Craigieburn – very traditional Labor seats. Some booths, Labor saw an 18 per cent drop, in the recent federal election.
There is an ethnic dimension to the anger, as many second-generation Italians, Greeks, Lebanese, and Pacific Islanders rejected the lockdowns, became antivax and fell into “the rabbit hole of conspiracy theories” the source said.
Lockdowns cruelled ethnic small business in areas of high diversity in the west and north of Melbourne.
The impact of this “anti-Dan sentiment will be is hard to gauge” the source said.
“The UAP, and other weird groups, will fish for those votes, but I don’t think it’s enough to endanger Labor held seats,” the source said to Neos Kosmos.
The source’s advice to his party was not “to waste time and resources trying to get back Green held seats.”
“The Victorian Greens are so fundamentalist, so dogmatic…their call to stop use of coal and gas in eight years isn’t in the realm of the possible,” the Labor source added.
“The Liberals are in disarray and have been drawn into the right” the source said. It is likely they will “suffer as their federal colleagues did in May, as their progressive support shifts to the Teals.”