Matt O'Sullivan (WA, Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

I'm standing here not surprised. We have seen this government time and time again avoiding scrutiny and treating this place, the Senate, with contempt. And we're seeing that happen here with the rushing through of this legislation without the proper scrutiny that it requires. In the 24 hours we've had to look at the bill, we've already seen that there are significant gaps and holes within it. We need to be able to properly examine it. We don't need an extensive amount of time; this can be done quite expeditiously. But the way that this government is rushing this through shows contempt for this place.

Now, this is, of course, a very serious matter that is of no surprise to anyone in this place—except the government, who are trying to pretend that this is almost like the first they're hearing about it. I mean, we're seeing the line-up of ministers, from the Prime Minister down, standing up at press conferences and acting all surprised at these incidents of intimidation and thuggery and of misuse of funds occurring, as if it's the first time they're learning about them. Yet you only need to go back to Hansard, even for just the five years that I've been here, and have a look at Senate estimates, where we've had none other than Senator Murray Watt, the minister, sitting in front of estimates, while the coalition and other senators—there and in other inquiries we've had—have outlined quite thoroughly the incidents of intimidation and unlawfulness that the CFMEU, or certain members within the CFMEU—officeholders—have been able to perpetrate in workplaces across Australia. These issues were brought to the minister, who was sitting at the table, along with, at the time, the ABCC and other officials—even the department themselves—who were in front of us in estimates, and the minister would defend them. The minister would just bat the questions away, saying, 'Oh, it's not an issue,' or, 'The ABCC is just there dealing with frivolous issues like flags and stickers, not dealing with serious issues.' But we were able to bring forward evidence that the CFMEU had been involved in serious misconduct in workplaces. Yet we're seeing Minister Watt, the Prime Minister and others—Minister Burke, before him—standing up at press conferences, and in this place and in the other place, and acting like this is the first they're hearing about it, acting with some sort of urgency! Well, they've known about the thuggery and the unlawfulness that occurs through this organisation for years and years and years. It's nothing new. It's just the BLF replaced with the CFMEU. I mean, it's continuing.

So we need this issue to be taken with some seriousness. We've already uncovered, in the limited and short amount of time we've had, some serious gaps in the legislation before us. We're saying: this should go to an inquiry. We should have a couple of days to look at it. You've got a great chair in Senator Sheldon, who will, no doubt, oversee that inquiry with the fairness with which he usually operates—and I know that Senator Roberts would agree with me: that we could get this done. I'm prepared to stay over the weekend if we have to. I don't mind. I'm the deputy chair of that committee. I don't mind. Let's get it done.

I realise that we have to deal with this urgently, because we can't allow this organisation, and those mongrels within this organisation, to treat their workers with such contempt in the way that they do, with little backhand deals and brown paper bags. These things need to be dealt with, and they need to be dealt with quickly. But we need a couple of days to properly scrutinise this legislation, to reveal the gaps and the holes that have been provided through this legislation. For the CFMEU, this legislation, if it were to pass, would just buy some time. The CFMEU would really just need to allow a little bit more time to go by, because there's a sunset clause with this bill, and then they'll be right back at it. And that's what they know.

The minister will have the powers without any scrutiny in this place and without it being disallowable by the Senate. That's the first thing that needs to change. That's something we've revealed and been able to look at in just the short time that we've had to look at it. But let's hear from stakeholders, let's get some evidence from all sides of this debate and let's make sure that we have proper and thorough legislation to properly deal with it once and for all.

The first thing that should be happening—and this bill should include it—is the restoration of the ABCC. As Senator Cash was saying, it was the first piece of legislation in one of the first tranches of legislation that came through this place on this. We now have a union body for that industry that has been operating without any tether, without any checks and balances, since this government has come in. So the issues have got worse, because they know that they've got a friend in this place. They know that they've got those sitting on that other side of the chamber and in the other place right within their grips, because their preselections and their funding that comes into their coffers are controlled. We saw Senator Cash say that over $6 million has come from the CFMEU into the Labor Party in recent years. Where is the government standing up, saying, 'We will hand that back'? Of course they are not doing that but they should. They should hand that money back. I saw the powers that be within the Labor Party say, 'The money has already been spent. It was a previous campaign.' Too bad. Take it out of the money raised already for this campaign. Hand it back or give it to charity—I don't care—but certainly don't give it to the CFMEU. Don't give it back to them. This government won't do that, of course, because they are addicted to the funding, addicted to the control and the power that comes from this organisation. There are many sitting on that side of the chamber who are here because of the support they received from the CFMEU. Their preselections are controlled by the powers who have that control. That is the nub of what is going on here.

The government should be restoring the ABCC. They should be taking from the ensuring integrity bill that we brought into this chamber in the last parliament, when we were in government. I remember sitting on that inquiry, going around the country and hearing case after case after case of the sorts of things that are coming forward now. Of course, it's a surprise to that side. We heard it then. The now government, with the crossbenches and the Greens—sadly, some of the Independents sided with the then opposition—voted against the ensuring integrity bill, which would have brought the checks and balances necessary to ensure union organisations, registered organisations, operated within the standards expected of them by their members and, indeed, by the wider Australian public. Here are the other things they should do: restore the ABCC, implement measures in the ensuring integrity bill and do it properly. Let's deal with that. We already have legislation that has been through extensive inquiries. Senator Ayres was on that committee at the time. We sat there together and heard the evidence time and again. We have the data; we have the evidence; we have what we need. Let's do that properly, ensure we can proceed in a way that is consistent with standards that are acceptable to Australians, not to those who are beholden to this organisation.

So don't come in here with your pretend, forced surprise and outrage against what is occurring in this organisation. Don't pretend this is some kind of revelation to you. We know this is the worst-kept secret in this country. Everyone knows; it is baked in. I speak to people about this. They see it on the front page of The West Australian in my state or in The Australian. They see it and they go, 'We know this has been going on forever. Why is it only now we had a royal commission into this issue. Why is it only now the government is trying to act?' As I explained, we know why: because they are beholden to them.

We have an opportunity here. Let's have a proper inquiry into this. We don't need an extensive amount of time to do it. Senator Sheldon can work expeditiously. I worked with him as deputy chair of that committee. We will get the evidence we need, we will make sure we properly scrutinise this bill and we will put forward the recommendations as a committee that need to be made to improve this bill to make sure the pitfalls are not there—firstly, that we don't have a minister without accountability back to this place; I mean, that is the most obvious change that needs to be made. It can be done very quickly. We will support the cut-off. We will do that but we ask the government to work with this Senate to ensure a proper inquiry can take place. We will do it quickly, get it done and come back as soon as we can.