“It’s an opportunity for renewal of this government,and we have a very good crop of ministers going forward,and I look forward to this rejuvenation of cabinet,” Wynne told Nine.

“James[Merlino] has been a wonderful friend,a wonderful minister. Truly the work he has done in education has been quite extraordinary … he has a wonderful legacy to celebrate.”

Five of the retiring ministers were part of cabinet’s eight-person crisis council set up at the start of the pandemic,highlighting the seniority of experience Labor is set to lose in November.

Between all seven retired and retiring ministers,the party has lost more than 110 years of parliamentary and eight decades of ministerial – and shadow ministerial – experience in the past two years.

Merlino has been deputy Labor leader since 2012 and education minister since 2014.

Foley was appointed health minister at the end of 2020 following the resignation of Jenny Mikakos after the COVID-19 hotel quarantine inquiry.

Neville took a lengthy leave of absence last year after revealing she had been battling Crohn’s disease. While Pakula’s lower house seat of Keysborough had been abolished in the latest redrawing of electoral boundaries,he had been expected to move to the upper house.

The ministers’ departures could force a major reshuffle just five months out from the polls.

A government source speaking on the condition of anonymity said the loss of Foley and his office would be a huge blow to the government.

“No other office had the relationships and connections that saw off the pandemic,health crisis and intense scrutiny so well,” the source said.

"They were highly regarded by unions,stakeholders and the department."

During question time in parliament on Thursday,Foley,Neville,Pakula and Merlino all gave ministerial statements that were described by Labor sources as “sounding like valedictory speeches”.

“We are in the position of being one of the nation’s leading areas of public health achievements through this global pandemic through the efforts of our nurses,doctors,ambos,allied health professionals and ward clerks,” Foley said.

“That is because it is this side of the house that has spent every day over the past 7½ years building that relationship and building that workforce with our healthcare workforce.”

Neville paid tribute to Victoria Police,Merlino spoke of the government’s mental health investment in schools,while Pakula said the “state was humming again” after 18 months of pandemic-induced restrictions.

This week,Merlino and Foley said they were both looking forward to “making a contribution” at the election in November.

It remains unclear who will replace Merlino as deputy Labor leader. Under Labor’s factional convention,the deputy comes from a different faction to the premier. Andrews is part of the Socialist Left while Merlino is from the Right faction.

Roads Minister Ben Carroll,a Right MP,has been touted as a potential replacement.

Some Labor sources have suggested the premier could handpick Transport Infrastructure Minister Jacinta Allan,from the Left. However,that would lead to significant backlash.

Labor’s Right is divided due to a bitter factional brawl following anAge and60 Minutes investigation that revealed dumped powerbroker Adem Somyurek’s industrial-scale branch-stacking operation.

Elements of the Right,including the Shop,Distributive and Allied Employees Association and former senator Stephen Conroy’s faction,signed a stability pact with the Socialist Left earlier this year following the power vacuum left by Somyurek’s exit from the Labor Party.

Right faction caucus MPs met throughout Thursday to resolve their pick for deputy.

One Right faction source said:“The Right is currently a bit of a mess,and that means if Daniel[Andrews] wants JA[Jacinta Allan] as his deputy,and we don’t get our shit together,then that will happen.”

Andrews has long favoured Allan as his successor,but the senior minister who has been in parliament since 1999 does not have the majority support of either her Left MP colleagues or the wider caucus of 71 Labor parliamentarians.

Many expected Hennessy and Merlino to contest for the leadership when Andrews leaves politics,which is widely tipped to be shortly after the state election.

Labor’s factions will spend the coming week determining who their picks are for cabinet,but Steve Dimopoulos,Colin Brooks and Lizzie Blandthorn are among the frontrunners from the Right.

Sonya Kilkenny,Vicki Ward and Harriet Shing from the Left are being touted as possible replacements for Foley and Wynne.

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