Lucy Wicks (Robertson, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Minister for Industry, Innovation and Science. Will the minister advise the House why it is important to maintain the rule of law in Australian industry? How will the government's ABCC and registered organisations commission boost Australian investment and support jobs for hardworking Australians?

Greg Hunt (Flinders, Liberal Party, Minister for Industry, Innovation and Science) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I want to thank the member for Robertson, who has a great interest in construction, in industry and in development and who is somebody in particular who has overseen the plans, the pledge and the promise and will oversee the delivery of the Gosford medical school. That is why she is concerned about real-world delivery of construction projects and the timely delivery of construction projects.

The construction sector in Australia employs a million people. It represents nine per cent of the workforce. It represents eight per cent of GDP. But it could be stronger still if there were fewer disruptions and therefore more projects commenced and therefore more jobs created—construction industry jobs that could be created which are not being created now. We saw today, of course, that these disruptions are now up to affecting over $100 billion of projects in the work that is being done by the CFMEU. You say, 'That's an extremely large number,' and the Treasurer has gone through a series of the projects, but let's take this down to the level of the sorts of projects that are being affected.

We know that in Victoria prisons are being deferred by the CFMEU. I can understand why, but so are hospitals. We have the Queensland children's hospital, which is being disrupted; the Royal Adelaide Hospital, where Jimmy O'Connor—it is a big family—was part of a finding of the court which delivered a $100,000 fine against CFMEU members where he pledged to go to war in relation to the Royal Adelaide Hospital; The Florey Institute of Neuroscience & Mental Health; the Ku-ring-gai hospital in New South Wales; and the Perth Children's Hospital. All of these have been subject to CFMEU disputes in which they are opposing any action when they oppose the ABCC legislation and the ROC legislation.

You ask: why would they do that? Why would they oppose action to clean up our hospitals? And what is it we have said? We have seen a story here—

Tony Smith (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The minister knows the rules on props.

Greg Hunt (Flinders, Liberal Party, Minister for Industry, Innovation and Science) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I am just reading.

Tony Smith (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I'm just watching.

Greg Hunt (Flinders, Liberal Party, Minister for Industry, Innovation and Science) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

We have seen a story here on the front page of The Courier Mail which begins: 'Who's really the boss? Bill Shorten secured the leadership of the ALP with the help of a secret back-room deal with the CFMEU to vote down the construction watchdog.' So what he is doing is trading the jobs of blue-collar workers for his own job. He is not the friend of the worker; he is the puppet of the union leaders and he is trading in the very people he pretends to represent. I am happy to table that. (Time expired)