Scott Buchholz (Wright, Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

I have just been corrected by the member for Aston; 87 per cent of the legislation that goes through here is unopposed. We do support good legislation, but we will be the first to oppose bad legislation. One key amendment will seek to bring across section 184 of the Corporations Act into the registered organisations act. This would make it a criminal offence for bosses of registered organisations to not act in good faith, to use their position dishonestly or to be reckless. The coalition's amendment will seek to further increase penalties, in line with the Corporations Act. Believe it or not, the penalties for comparable offences by the officials in registered organisations are almost nonexistent. Similar obligations under sections 287 and 288 of the Fair Work (Registered Organisations) Act 2009 as to using information for personal advantage or causing detriment to an organisation are limited to civil penalties of $2,200 for an individual, and there are no criminal provisions.

In conclusion, I believe that this is a poor bill that will not deal with the substantive issues born out of Fair Work Australia's investigations. It goes without saying that the seemingly never-ending saga of Fair Work Australia's investigations into the Health Services Union has made it absolutely clear that major reform in this area is needed. However, I believe that the reform is needed in the management rather than the legislation. The assessment of the former Attorney-General, the Hon. Robert McClelland MP, in the submission by the Institute of Public Relations noting that there are areas of the bill that can be strengthened, is highly accurate. He commented:

The bill is a step in the right direction. However, its reforms are modest and do not go far enough.

Finally, without doubt this bill and the proposed coalition amendments are a sure method that will provide greater protection to Australians in the workplace. For too long, unions have escaped proper scrutiny and finally this has exploded with the investigation of the Health Services Union and the protracted investigation by Fair Work Australia. I commend this bill, and I commend the amendments— (Time expired)

See this speech in context