The "carve up" of influence in Victorian Labor is setting back the prospects of grassroots reform, says Labor's national president Mark Butler.
Labor leader Bill Shorten in December became embroiled in a cross-factional brawl in his home state, as a long-standing "peace deal" between his Right power base, unions and sections of the Left broke down.
The intervention raised eyebrows among his federal parliamentary colleagues, but to date no one has put their name to criticism of the stoush.
Mr Butler, who hails from the Left faction, said in a speech on Monday the ALP needed to boost its membership beyond 50,000, but could not do so while it was a party that gave members fewer rights than any other Labor or social democratic party.
He also took aim at members who engaged in "backroom buffoonery" and called for a fresh push for reform at the ALP's national conference to be held in Adelaide in July.
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Mr Butler doubled down on his speech on Wednesday, saying his words had been directed at "the two larger branches where that reform effort has stalled" - NSW and Victoria.
"We've seen really good reform happen here in South Australia, in Queensland, Tasmania and in the territories. But in the two big states, particularly in Victoria, I have to say, reform efforts ... have stalled," he told ABC radio.
"There is a carve up of influence in Victoria that is derogating from the reform effort, not advancing it."
Mr Butler, who is understood to be interested in recontesting the presidency at the national conference, says reform is important not just for the party organisation, but the prospects of Labor winning government.
"At the end of the day (Australians) will vote for Labor, or not vote for Labor, according to our ideas, but our ability to implement those ideas, those policies, depend on the health of our party organisation," he said.
"We are not a think tank - we are a movement that has to put thousands of thousands of shoulders to the wheel to implement those ideas."
The Right is expected to put forward Transport Workers Union boss Tony Sheldon for the party presidency, but is unlikely to have the numbers to win.
