Christopher Pyne (Sturt, Liberal Party, Leader of the House) Share this | Hansard source

I thank the member for Fisher for his question. He, like every member on this side of the House, knows that we must end the corrupting benefits in the industrial relations system that have been infecting the relationship between business and the unions for decades. That was identified by the Heydon royal commission. This government is implementing the recommendation to outlaw corrupting benefits and to make the payment of them a criminal act. I know that the member for Fisher is very keen on industrial relations reform. He, like every member on this side of the House, wants to see that change come about.

He asked me for a few examples. There are a few examples. The Prime Minister went through a few just then. Visy Industries, for example—$200,000 to the AWU in 40 secret payments, while they were negotiating six enterprise business agreements with the AWU. The Leader of the Opposition was the secretary at the time, national then state. Alcoa—$90,000 to the AWU across eight secret payments while they were negotiating five enterprise business agreements. Sugar Australia—$16½ thousand to the AWU while they were negotiating three enterprise business agreements. It goes on and on—business after business negotiating enterprise business agreements with the AWU while the Leader of the Opposition was the state or national secretary.

The Leader of the Opposition would have us believe that this was all the most amazing coincidence, the most remarkable coincidence, and there was no connection between the workers' rights being sold down the river under enterprise business agreements while secret payments were being made by those businesses to the Australian Workers' Union. It reminds me of that wonderful movie, Muriel's Wedding. 'Deidre Chambers—what a coincidence! Make some room for Deidre Chambers, family, so she can come and join us.' You can just imagine the Alcoa executives at the Bamboo House in Little Bourke Street—we have been there many times—enjoying themselves between their shark fin soup and their duck pancakes, discussing their enterprise business agreements and their relationship with the union, and who should come into the restaurant? Bill Shorten—what a coincidence!

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