Opposition Vows to Restore Building Watchdog in Response to CFMEU Corruption Concerns

July 19, 2024 TruthUSA

The embattled CFMEU continues to face scrutiny of corruption and its conduct.

Opposition Leader Peter Dutton says he will work to resurrect a dormant construction watchdog in the wake of the controversy surrounding the Construction, Forestry, Maritime, and Energy Union (CFMEU).

Mr. Dutton says the Liberal-National Coalition would introduce laws for the Australian Building and Construction Commission (ABCC) to monitor the construction industry during the federal Parliament’s August sittings.

Failing that, the opposition leader pledged to bring back the ABCC if he wins the next election.

The overseeing body was wound down last year, with all outstanding legal matters referred to the Fair Work Ombudsman.

It was formalized in 2016 and issued $8.7 million in fines to the CFMEU during its short tenure, with one judge calling the union the “greatest recidivist offenders in Australian corporate history.”

Mr. Dutton says it was necessary to bring the body back to ensure standards across the industry.

Speaking on 2GB Radio on July 18, Mr. Dutton said people were not really shocked by allegations of corruption and misbehavior in the union’s construction division, saying it was “common knowledge.”

“The CFMEU is the most prosecuted union in the country,” he said. “There are hundreds of convictions that have been made for assaults and stand-over tactics, and the level of corruption is just phenomenal.”

Labor MP Bill Shorten argued against bringing back the ABCC, saying he didn’t believe it would solve the industry’s woes.

The ABCC was initially established in 2005 in response to the Cole Royal Commission report, which identified elements of lawlessness in the construction sector.

ABCC and Union’s Tense Relationship

The construction division of the CFMEU and the now-defunct ABCC have had a tense relationship, which boiled over into a long-held grudge by former CFMEU boss John Setka against former commissioner Stephen McBurney.

In June, Mr Setka told the ABC it was fair to describe his feelings against Mr McBurney as a grudge, but said he was not making threats but rather “exposing people.”