Ross Cadell (NSW, National Party) Share this | Hansard source

When I asked to get a copy so I could report it, I was asked 'please' not to, because, with the threats that came, what would happen to that site, what would happen to that building and what would happen to that developer if it were raised were far more problematic to the developer than the actual incident. This is what has happened. These are the standover tactics that have happened. I've seen this with my own eyes, but we pretend it doesn't happen, because of the fear. If this is happening, where there is a video of this happening and they continue to get away with it, it is because of the fear that's in the industry.

There was a link today to the cost of living, which is real. When we go out there, we've got an economy that has survived two years of COVID but can't survive two years of Labor, because of these deals. We've got people barely holding on. They've used their COVID savings, and they've saved to a point. We're hearing it in all our inquiries—the credit helplines and all of the things that are happening because they can't go any longer. They're using Afterpay to buy gift cards to buy groceries, because there is no care about the money that is spent under this government. It is the money they spend on these things and the free range they give to people like the CFMEU to raise costs that are driving these people to the edge. It has to stop, and the first thing that needs to stop is clarity. We need an examination into the CFMEU to see what has happened—a real thing with teeth, a royal commission—and to see what they have done, who has benefited, who has abetted them and the ways to stop them.