Staff in Albanese’s office were informed of her departure on Wednesday,according to three sources speaking on the condition of anonymity to discuss the internal workings of the government.
In a note to her colleagues on Wednesday afternoon,Fitch said after seven years’ working in Canberra,“it’s time for me to take on a new challenge”.
“I came into politics to work to get Labor into government,” she wrote. “I’m proud of what we have done together in opposition and in government.”
Loading
Fitch rose from being a staffer in then opposition frontbencher Chris Bowen’s office to the head of the prime minister’s media unit.
The relatively young adviser was described as tenacious and highly capable by government sources and was an integral member of the team that took Labor from opposition into government for the first time since 2007.
Unlike previous senior prime ministerial secretaries,Fitch is known in Canberra for her reluctance to engage with senior print and television journalists,though a government source said her role was more heavily focused on briefing Albanese than reporters.