ROBERT McClelland has hit back at reports former premier Morris Iemma could replace him as Labor’s candidate for Barton at the next election.
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‘‘I think the speculation is all circumstantial, with people dancing on my grave before I have passed away,’’ he said.
The veteran MP, who was dumped from the ministry by Prime Minister Julia Gillard early this year after he publicly supported Kevin Rudd in a leadership battle, said he would seek preselection for another term, and did not expect to be challenged.
Mr Iemma quit as Premier in 2008 after losing the support of the dominant right-wing faction over his attempt to privatise electricity.
He was reported this week to have expressed interest in the seat if Mr McClelland retired.
Foreign Affairs Minister Bob Carr, who preceded Mr Iemma as Premier, supported the proposed move.
‘‘I cannot think of a better candidate than Morris Iemma,’’ Mr Carr said in New York, where he was attending the United Nations General Assembly.
Mr Iemma had been ‘‘badly treated by my party’’ and ‘‘nothing was gained by replacing him as leader’’.
Mr McClelland said he expected preselection for Barton to take place in the next couple of months.
While he did not expect to be challenged, ‘‘you can never take these things for granted’’.
‘‘I think people are thinking ‘McClelland is not a minister, he has been there for 17 years and there has been previous speculation he may give it away’,’’ he said.
‘‘But the reality is I am not [giving it away].’’
Mr McClelland said he was still only 54 and kept in shape by doing weights and kayaking.
‘‘I am still very fit and I am going to keep on having a go,’’ he said.
‘‘Just this month I completed a 25-kilometre paddle with [Cook MP] Scott Morrison from Gunnamatta Bay to Audley and back to raise money for the Sylvanvale Foundation.’’
Mr McClelland was not critical of Mr Iemma for expressing interest in the seat.
‘‘Morris is a friend of mine,’’ he said.
‘‘I don’t think Morris would contest preselection against me but, irrespective of that, I think very highly of him.
‘‘He is very well regarded by the local community and, in particular, he has kept his connections with a number of ethnic groups, which stands him in good stead.’’
Mr McClelland said that while leadership issues in the parliamentary party had caused ‘‘fractures with one or two of my colleagues’’, he did not believe they were reflected at a local level.
‘‘I am pretty sure I enjoy the support of the vast majority of local members of the Labor Party,’’ he said.
