<?xml version="1.0" encoding="ISO-8859-1"?> <docID>328425</docID> <postdate>2024-09-05 11:24:20</postdate> <headline>Former Labor leader Bill Shorten to announce retirement</headline> <body><p><img class="wp-image-328426" src="https://citynews.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/20230808001828837887-original-1-scaled.jpg" alt="" width="900" height="600" /></p> <caption>Federal Labor minister and former leader Bill Shorten will retire from politics. (Lukas Coch/AAP PHOTOS)</caption> <p class="wire-column__preview__author"><span class="kicker-line">By <b>Kat Wong</b> in Canberra</span></p> <p><strong>Former Labor leader Bill Shorten will announce his retirement from politics</strong></p> <p>Mr Shorten led the Australian Labor Party from 2013 to 2019 and has served as the MP for the Melbourne electorate of Maribyrnong since 2007.</p> <p>He was appointed to the ministry during Kevin Rudd and Julia Gillard's government, before winning the role of opposition leader.</p> <p>But when the Liberals took a surprise victory in the 2019 election, Mr Shorten stepped back and Anthony Albanese took on the mantle.</p> <p>He returned to cabinet as the National Disability Insurance Scheme and government services minister after Labor won the 2022 federal election.</p> <p>Prior to his career in politics, the former Labor leader was a prolific union figure, having been elected as the Australian Workers' Union's Victorian state secretary and later national secretary.</p> </body>