July 3, 2026 — 11:30amNSW Labor has been accused of gagging internal debate over the conflict in Gaza and the AUKUS alliance ahead of the party’s state conference this weekend.Union leaders have also raised concerns about efforts to prevent party members from challenging the Minns government’s protest laws, saying the prospect of no discussion is “ridiculous”.Labor Prime Minister and member for Grayndler Anthony Albanese speaks at the NSW Labor conference in 2024.AAPHundreds of delegates will join NSW Labor ministers and MPs at Sydney Town Hall on Saturday and Sunday ahead of the 2027 state election. The gathering offers rank and file members an opportunity to joust over the party’s policy positions.But Sussex Street has come under fire for trying to stifle public debate from occurring on the floor of the conference that could prove embarrassing for and/or critical of the state and federal Labor governments.A letter co-signed by Labor Friends of Palestine and Labor Against War says that several foreign policy issues such as AUKUS, Palestine and the US alliance had been noted and referred to Labor’s national conference, later in July, meaning there was little chance they would be debated at the weekend.“The preamble appears to be an unquestioning defence of the existing policy position of the Australian government, whilst branch motions reveal a legitimate desire to debate, influence and change current policy – as is appropriate at State Conference,” the letter states.“The refusal to properly engage with the views expressed in branch motions is an insult to the rank and file members who attended their branches to move, debate and pass them.”The letter argues that the vast majority of motions on Palestine were “unanimous in their condemnation of ongoing violence and displacement in Gaza and the West Bank”. It rejects the idea that foreign policy matters could be endorsed only at the party’s national conference as a principle being “selectively applied”.“State conference is the key forum for determining NSW Labor policy on all areas, not just those under the direct control of the state government,” it states.Nazira Sowaid, a member of Labor Friends of Palestine and co-signatory of the letter, accused Labor HQ of trying to stifle rank and file members from having “tough conversations” in public.“When things are happening behind closed doors, they are a lot easier to contain,” she said.“These conferences were a place where ordinary members could debate the important issues of the time. I don’t see disagreement as being an issue. It shows we’re a healthy party.”Critics of Labor HQ say the placement of “Australia and the World” – one of nine policy areas that Labor branches submit motions to – as the final item on the Sunday conference agenda will ensure insufficient time to discuss matters such as Palestine and AUKUS.Those concerns were shared by Labor members who believed that placing the “Social justice and legal affairs” topic as the penultimate item on Sunday was also an effort to limit criticism of the Minns government’s contentious policies.Australian Services Union NSW and ACT secretary Angus McFarland said he was pushing for the agenda item to be raised and discussed at the conference.“There are good things that the government has done in those areas, but also areas people want to challenge them on like protest laws,” he said. “It would be ridiculous in 2026 if a modern Labor government in a democracy was not to have a robust discussion about that.”A senior Labor source confirmed that foreign affairs was unlikely to be debated three weeks before the national conference, and alleged the criticism was being generated by allies of Anthony D’Adam, an outspoken Labor MLC who is a member of the “soft-left” faction.D’Adam now sits in third spot on the Left’s upper house ticket, but party sources said the soft-left was pushing for him to be placed above Asren Pugh, a Byron Bay muesli executive. While Sussex Street was pushing for a ticket to be agreed on before conference, the prospect of a ballot on the conference floor was a possibility on Friday, Labor sources said.Several branches have put forward motions that are critical of the Israeli government and supportive of steps to recognise Palestine as a sovereign state.A motion submitted by the Glebe branch states that, if successful, NSW Labor will write to Foreign Minister Penny Wong calling for the suspension of the AUKUS pact and recalibrating the nation’s foreign policy “away from the US alliance towards an independent military policy”.While motions expected to be deemed controversial or critical of federal foreign policy posture have been deferred, other foreign policy issues, such as condemning Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, have been supported.The South Coast SEC branch is calling on the Minns government to begin public consultation about converting Port Kembla and Newcastle to nuclear submarine bases.Start the day with a summary of the day’s most important and interesting stories, analysis and insights. Sign up for our Morning Edition newsletter.Max Maddison is a state political reporter at The Sydney Morning Herald.Jessica McSweeney is a reporter at The Sydney Morning Herald covering state politics and urban affairs.Connect via email.From our partners