Anthony Albanese accused of being 'vindictive, nasty and arrogant' over surprise move
Anthony Albanese has been labelled 'vindictive and nasty' over a decision to slash the number of staff available to the Opposition.
For the past three decades, the government of the day has allocated the Opposition staffing resources equivalent to 21 percent of its own.
However, Albanese has been accused of breaking 30 years of convention by reducing that figure to 17 percent for senior Liberals - resulting in around 20 people losing their jobs.
Senator James McGrath, Shadow Special Minister of State, said the move would diminish the Coalition's ability to hold the Labor administration to account.
'The Prime Minister today has shown himself to be personally vindictive and nasty,' Senator McGrath said.
'By breaking convention and stripping staff from the Opposition, the Prime Minister's arrogance is an attack on accountability.
'Given Labor's historically significant majority, this arrogant decision to diminish Opposition resourcing comes at his government's most powerful electoral moment—precisely the time our country needs a strong Opposition.'
Labor claims the reason for ending the longstanding arrangement, which has enjoyed bipartisan support, is to better reflect representation in Parliament.
Labor is understood to have reduced its own staffing headcount by around 10.
Backbenchers will continue to receive the standard allocation of electorate staff.
However, the Opposition points out that there are still 23 members of the Shadow Cabinet and seven outer Shadow Ministers who retain the same workload as before.
"The Australian people deserve an Opposition that is resourced appropriately to be able to hold the Government to account, especially during such a precarious and challenging time for our country," Senator McGrath added.
"This substantial cut in headcount significantly reduces the Opposition's ability to conduct its work and keep this Government accountable."
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