Michaelia Cash (WA, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Employment and Workplace Relations) Share this | Hansard source

The purpose of this legislation is probably best summed up with a very famous saying: 'The fox is guarding the hen house.' With the legislation in its current form, I certainly hope that the Australian Labor Party are prepared to take on what will need to be some incredibly significant amendments to the legislation to ensure that this is not basically the ability of the minister to turn a blind eye while pulling the wool over the Australian people's eyes. The legislation that we have before us currently seeks to give the minister a blank cheque to deal with his friends in the CFMEU, who are, as we know, one of the biggest donors to the Australian Labor Party.

Why is that dangerous? Because, as we know, Minister Watt has spent so much of his time in this place being one of the CFMEU's biggest cheerleaders. As I said, there was no greater cheerleader for the CFMEU when we were trying to stand up the Australian Building and Construction Commission. And there was no greater cheerleader for the CFMEU when the Australian Labor Party, on coming into office, ticked off as its first item of business Mr Setka's—one of the most militant unionists in this country—wish list item, which was the abolition of the Australian Building and Construction Commission. In fact, I recall it because, at that time, Minister Watt was smiling like a Cheshire cat when he achieved his lifelong dream of abolishing the Australian Building and Construction Commission and literally handing to John Setka, lovely man that he is—said sarcastically—control of the construction sector in Australia. As so many have said since that time but in particular over the last few weeks, Mr Albanese, how has that worked out for you? More than that, how has that worked out for the thousands and thousands of people who wake up every single day to do a hard day's work in the construction sector? The bad news for all of them is: it hasn't worked out well.

But, according to Minister Watt, this is all very new. This is all very new behaviour. It has only just come to light. There's a good chance the Australian Labor Party weren't aware of this behaviour prior to the last few weeks. Seriously, you have got to be kidding me! This is the party that fought tooth and nail in 2016 when the former coalition government, because it stood on principle and wanted to clean up the construction industry in this country, went to a double dissolution election. One of those bills was the restoration of the Australian Building and Construction Commission. The Australian Labor Party, when in opposition, fought us every single step of the way. The Australian people, on the other hand, understood the need for a tough cop on the beat and they understood the need to clean up the construction industry in this country. And that is why they returned the coalition to office. We honoured our commitment to the Australian people. Indeed, we did, despite everything that the then Australian Labor Party opposition did and threw at us—all the mud, all the accusations—