Long-time tech advocate Ed Husic has been dropped from his role as Industry Minister, with factional plays reshaping Prime Minister Anthony Albanese’s new Cabinet following the party's thumping election win.

Labor’s full caucus met in Canberra on Friday for the first time following last weekend’s huge election win and endorsed the new-look 30 frontbencher team.

Husic has been removed from this frontbench and will not serve as Industry Minister in the Labor government’s second term, while Attorney-General Mark Dreyfus has also been dropped.

Husic served as Minister for Industry and Science for all of the Albanese government’s first term after being appointed in June 2022.

He also served as Shadow Minister for more than a year prior to the 2022 election.

His ousting is the result of factional power-plays following the election of new Labor MPs around the country, primarily between the Right factions in New South Wales and Victoria.

Taking Husic and Dreyfus’s spots in the frontbench will be Sam Rae and Daniel Mulino from the Victorian Right faction of Labor, and Jess Walsh from the Victorian Left.

Albanese has accepted this decision and did not intervene to save either Minister.

‘Appalling denial’ of diligence and application

The decision to drop Husic has been savaged by former Labor Prime Minister Paul Keating, who lauded the former Minister’s advocacy for emerging technologies.

“The factional displacement of industry and technology Minister, Ed Husic, from the Albanese Cabinet represents an appalling denial of Husic’s diligence and application in bringing the core and emerging technologies of the digital age to the centre of Australian public policy,” Keating said in a statement on Thursday.

Health Minister Mark Butler said the axing of Husic and Dreyfus is the result of a “tough” democratic process within the Labor Party.

“They can be tough, and they’ve been tough for Mark Dreyfus and Ed Husic, who I’ve served with for a long time, but that’s how democratic processes work,” Butler said on Friday.

“A government’s got to balance stability with some renewal, and I think we’re going through that process right now.”

Reaction from ACS

Australia's association for technology professionals, the Australian Computer Society (ACS), said it was "saddened" to hear that Husic would not be continuing as Industry and Science Minister.

"Ed has been a long-standing ally of the Australian technology sector who we have worked closely with as both a Minister and Opposition Spokesperson," ACS said in a statement.

"Over the years we have appreciated his support, and we wish him the best in his future roles and hope to be collaborating in the future in growing Australia’s tech sector.

“With the new Cabinet being announced next week, we also look forward to working with the incoming Ministry," with ACS citing artificial intelligence as the next boom industry "boosting the nation's productivity, along with the potential for new industries."

Tech advocacy

During his time as Minister, Husic has led a number of initiatives centred on artificial intelligence, quantum computing, manufacturing technology and diversity in STEM.

Many of these also remain in train, with responsibility to be taken over by the as-yet unknown new Industry Minister.

Husic led the development and launch of the $15 billion National Reconstruction Fund, a flagship Labor policy during the 2022 federal election.

The National Reconstruction Fund has dished out more than $430 million across eight investments during the last term and would have been shut down by the Coalition if it had won the recent election.

Under Husic’s stewardship, an AI capability plan is being developed and will be delivered by the end of this year, and the federal government has agreed to all 11 recommendations from a diversity in STEM review.

Husic has also championed the quantum sector and, most notably and controversially, announced a $470 million Commonwealth investment in US-based quantum firm PsiQuantum.

The investment was slammed by the Opposition and drew criticism for its focus on a US-based company and questions over whether the plan to deliver the world’s first utility-scale quantum computer in Brisbane was achievable.

Husic has been the Member for Chifley since 2010 and was re-elected in the seat with a 6.4 per cent swing towards him.

At the caucus meeting on Friday, Albanese heralded the diversity of the Labor team, saying that nearly 60 per cent of the MPs are women.

“Your objective should be really clear…you need to be in government to make a difference,” Albanese told his caucus.

“We don’t seek power for its own sake.”

Treasurer Jim Chalmers earlier this week said that embracing technology would be a key tenet of the Labor government’s second term, and that it would “do more to embrace technology, particularly the AI opportunity”.