Michaelia Cash (WA, Liberal Party, Minister for Women) Share this | Hansard source

Unfortunately, I am sickened to advise the Senate that individuals at the CFMEU picket line at Oaky North have reached a new level of depravity. Outside Oaky North, in Queensland, last week, we saw reports of CFMEU thugs intimidating workers at Glencore, including threatening to rape the children of these workers. It is quite frankly hard to imagine that anyone, despite the circumstances, could say anything so depraved that they would threaten to rape someone's children, in particular when all these people are trying to do is to go to work.

Those opposite, unfortunately, colleagues, don't condemn the CFMEU; they just try to justify their behaviour. Let's take, for example, Senator Watt, who proudly boasts that he has been to the picket line and stood beside the same people who have made these threats—threats to rape someone's children. Then, of course, we witnessed Sally McManus, who dismissed this behaviour as a result of a lack of education. What a snob. She thinks that people who don't have university degrees must therefore behave like animals. Then, of course, we have Labor candidate Ged Kearney, who laid the blame for these vile threats with the employer, saying, 'If there's anyone here to blame, it must be the company.' How can anyone, in any way, try to rationalise or justify threatening to rape someone's children?