Joel Fitzgibbon says Labor may need to split to survive

Labor's agriculture spokesman Joel Fitzgibbon said dividing the party in "twenty to thirty years" may be necessary for its survival, as it struggles to balance the needs of both the working-class and the progressive left.

"I am very fearful about how the Labor Party will manage to juggle these two electoral bases and I do fear that, it won't be in my time, but the party might end up splitting," Mr Fitzgibbon told podcast No Limitations.

"I don't want that to happen. I hope it is unlikely, but I just don't know how we reconcile the difficulty of being all things to people."

Mr Fitzgibbon said such a move, coupled with a coalition agreement, would allow the party to express more diverse views.

"We will have a coalition arrangement just like they have, with the future local members in Sydney and Melbourne pushing their agenda and leaving their mark," Mr Fitzgibbon said.

"And the guy in central Queensland with the other Labor Party, it could be called New Labor or Old Labor or whatever you want to call them, doing something else and forming a coalition."

Australian National University political science emeritus professor John Warhurst said how Labor appealed to its broad voter base was a long-running argument within the party - the Country Labor arm of the party being one example of the conflict.

"It's an interesting idea with some merit, but it's pretty explosive for a frontbencher to be floating these ideas," Professor Warhurst said.

"While on the face of it, they are reasonable comments, and he's talking about the future, but it may have the opposite effect to what was intended and raise tensions within the party.

"On one hand it's contributing to healthy debate, but at the other end, it's dangerous for a frontbencher to flirt with these ideas and putting in this way is not helpful."

In the 2018 election, Mr Fitzgibbon's saw a significant drop in his Hunter electorate margin, which saw the country's highest number of One Nation votes, capturing more than 20 per cent of first preferences.

In the podcast, Mr Fitzgibbon expressed frustration about "sticking to a policy that is political death in your electorate", alluding to Labor's stance on coal and his electorate's coal-heavy industry.

"He came out very strongly after the election and for the last 18 months he's been very outspoken," Professor Warhurst said.

"These comments would not be welcome by Anthony Albanese. Whether it's a sign of a rocky relationship or [Fitzgibbon] feels he's at a stage of his career where he has a licence to say these sorts of things - all the same it's political dangerous."

Labor Senator Tim Ayres said the party's broach church was a benefit, not a hindrance, and an achievement to be celebrated.

"When we're in government, it makes us strong and effective speakers for all - that was a real strength in the Hawke-Keating period, a period where regional Australia had a real seat at the cabinet table, not a doormat in the Nationals," Senator Ayres said.

"There is constant political analysis and debate about how Labor can be effective in the bush and the city, but the answer lies not in analysis paralysis, but in getting out there and doing the job.

"The less we talk about ourselves and the more we talk about real issues, the better our region and country support will be."