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ALP membership surge under Rudd

Labor claims more 1650 new members have signed up to the ALP since Kevin Rudd took office, a large chunk in NSW and Queensland.

ALP membership surge under Rudd
Labor claims 1650 new members have signed up to the ALP since Kevin Rudd took office.

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Source: AAP


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Labor is reporting a "groundswell of support" from the party's grassroots since Kevin Rudd's return as prime minister.

The ALP has attracted 1650 new members since Mr Rudd took the helm less than a month ago.

A spokesman for Mr Rudd's office said 500 of those new members were in his home state of Queensland, with about 440 more in NSW.

Mr Rudd is expected to tell Labor MPs in Sydney on Monday that the renewed support comes on the back of his proposed reforms to give ALP members a say in the selection of the party's leader.

He will also brief the caucus on plans for the upcoming election campaign, with a spokesman telling AAP he was expected to warn his colleagues of a "tough campaign" against Opposition Leader Tony Abbott.

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Also on the agenda will be Labor's scrapping of the carbon tax, and the controversial asylum seeker deal signed with Papua New Guinea on Friday.

Senior Labor MP Mark Butler on Sunday said there's a level of discomfort within Labor ranks about the harsh new policy.

Mr Rudd's office said the prime minister knew it was a tough policy, but he would tell colleagues it was an approach he believed would make a real difference in the fight against people smuggling.


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