Glenn Sterle (WA, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I want to talk about some fine work that is being conducted on the Rural and Regional Affairs and Transport Committee. Before I do, there is something that Australians really have to understand about what is going on in this nation. Through our road safety inquiry, we have uncovered the exploitation of foreign workers, predominantly Indians, through a corrupting of the visa system. What has come out—and it is on the Hansard record—is that there are scumbags in this fine country that are bringing Indians into Australia on student visas and then the students are being employed as truck drivers. I am not having a go at Indians. Let me just get this clear. Everyone is welcome in this nation. What I am having a go at is exploitation, through the visa system—and God only knows what they are being paid, at the expense of Australian jobs. This is where I have a real problem—

Senator Williams interjecting—

and Senator Williams has been working very closely with me on this. We will continue to delve into this disgusting behaviour that is being conducted in this nation.

The Department of Immigration and Border Protection are well aware of it, because they are the ones that gave us the information. We finally sucked it out of the department, in a hearing, what the hell visa these drivers were on. This was the B-double. I made a mistake. I just saw a tweet and I thought it was a semi. It was a B-double. So to all those passionate truckies out there that cannot wait—good old truckies!—to tell me I got the wrong configuration: well done, boys. Yeah, I get it. Now put the effort into your fingers and start dobbing in these so-and-sos for exploiting these people. That would be a far better use of your energy.

These students were employed with Scott's transport. I do not know what they do during the week. Maybe they are studying medicine. Maybe they are doing some fantastic work to become great citizens and help out kids with cancer. Maybe they are studying nuclear medicine. I do not know. But on that side of the chamber do they seriously believe that those of us who have a trucking background, who actually are passionate about Australian jobs and Australian apprenticeships, believe that these students on Friday night pack up their schoolbooks, put them into a case or put them into the locker at uni, then jump into a B-double and do a two-up operation between Brisbane and Sydney and back? Pull the other leg—seriously.

I am going to read some excerpts from correspondence I had on behalf of the Queensland government Department of Transport and Main Roads. They were fantastic. They had taken information from us. We said that we had a real problem. We found out there is an RTO in Tweed Heads—and I will give you the name of the RTO. I am not going to rush, because I am going to come back into this chamber every week and do a speech on this and keep everyone updated with what is going on. There is a twisted, bent, corrupt RTO in Tweed Heads who was bringing the Indian students from Queensland into New South Wales. They were doing their training there. He was assessing them, then he was ticking off and saying that they were fit to drive, and then they were going back to Queensland. The Queensland government—thank goodness for the Queensland government—issued 113 'show causes' to these 113 people who came through this corrupt provider of heavy vehicle transport licensing: 'Why should you have a licence?'

The result of that was that 60 licence holders have had their heavy vehicle licence downgraded to a car licence. Six have passed the Q-SAFE class heavy rigid practical driving test, demonstrating their competency to hold a class HR licence, and 47 have been granted an extension of time to undergo further testing. Mr Acting Deputy President Marshall, I know your commitment to young Australian workers through your previous life and how you were successful in gaining an apprenticeship and became a tradesman. If this were happening in plumbing or electrics or house building—and it might be for all I know—there would be an absolute uproar. Why is there not an absolute uproar from that side of the chamber that Indian truck drivers are being brought into this nation, corruptly trained in Queensland and given licences and then going out on the roads and being exploited?

God only knows how dangerous these blokes can be. So what I am asking on the website—my Facebook page that I have started, where we have had 216,000 people contacted, 37,000 views and 1,012 shares—is: dob them in. I will be proud to stand up here and dob in, and relay your words of, every corrupt employer of transport, or user of transport, that is exploiting Indian drivers and exploiting the visa system.

John Williams (NSW, National Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

And trainers.

Glenn Sterle (WA, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Senator Williams and I will continue the good work. We have only just started scratching the surface. This is going to be fun.