Malcolm Turnbull (Wentworth, Liberal Party, Prime Minister) Share this | Hansard source

I move:

That the amendments be agreed to.

The amendments will give effect to a number of changes that will ensure the impartiality of the ABCC and the commissioner of the Building and Construction Commission. They will make changes relating to establishing the burden of proof for the work health and safety exception, consistent with the Fair Work Act. The amended bill will require the ABCC to outline, in its annual report, details of activity taken against employers and require that a report be provided quarterly to the minister. It will establish a security-of-payment working group to oversee the functions of the commissioner. It will retain the current legislative provision where a compulsory examination notice can only be issued by a nominated presidential member of the Administrative Appeals Tribunal. It will apply a judicial review under the AD(JR) Act to administrative decisions made under the bill. And, up until 29 November 2018, it will allow building industry participants whose enterprise agreements are not Building Code compliant to tender for and be awarded Commonwealth-funded building contracts.

This Building and Construction Commission bill is a vital economic reform, as honourable members have heard earlier today in the House. It is a vital economic reform to restore the rule of law to the construction sector, which employs over a million Australians and involves 300,000 small businesses. It is eight per cent of GDP. This has been a hard-fought reform which the opposition have resisted for many, many years. We have secured the support of the Senate, subject to the amendments—moved by the crossbench—that have been described and have been returned to the House from the Senate. I thank the Senate for its consideration of the bill. I thank the crossbench for their contribution to the debate and their contribution to the amendments. I commend the bill to the House.

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