Paul Scarr (Queensland, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I move:

That the Senate take note of the document.

This is the annual report from the Australian Building and Construction Commission for 2021-22 and also the quarterly report for the period 1 April to 30 June 2022. I don't think that any objective stakeholder or citizen of this country who took the time to read the Australian Building and Construction Commission's annual report of 2021-22 would identify this as an agency which should be abolished. To the contrary, any reasonably minded person who perused this annual report would come to the view that the ABCC is undertaking extremely important work which is in the best interests of Australia and the best interests of all Australians, including those, in particular, involved in the construction industry.

You don't have to go too far into the annual report to make that assessment. Indeed, in the introductory section of the annual report, there's a performance snapshot with respect to the year-end review for 2021-22. What does that tell us about the performance of the ABCC? Let me tell you: 4,355 inquiries received; 203 presentations delivered; 99 per cent of calls answered within 60 seconds; 1,638 site visits conducted. Listen to these figures: $5,278,478—over $5 million—paid to subcontractors following ABCC intervention; 1,577 enterprise agreements assessed in an average assessment time of 2.4 weeks; 555 workplace relations management plans assessed; 225 code audits finalised; $2,569,852 worth of wages and entitlements recovered for over 4,000 employees; 161 wage audits finalised. Does this sound like an agency which should be abolished, or does this sound like an agency which is doing its job and should be supported?

Addressing noncompliance, there were 171 investigations finalised and 164 new investigations commenced. Obviously, there's still a problem, isn't there? The pipeline of investigations which need to be continued continues. There were 22 proceedings finalised but 23 new proceedings commenced. Again, there's a pipeline of issues which the ABCC needs to address. In terms of penalties: $3,087,438 of penalties was imposed.

What is the success rate of the ABCC? We've heard from some of those opposite that the ABCC is pursuing matters which are trivial, inconsequential et cetera. What actually happens? What happened during the last financial year, ending 30 June 2022, when the ABCC had its proceedings finalised? A 100 per cent success rate! Not 95, not 90, not 85—100 per cent success. That builds on the success of the ABCC since 2 December 2016, where: $13.5 million was paid to subcontractors; 110 proceedings were finalised with a 92 per cent success rate; $728,000 in compensation paid to victimless of unlawful conduct; over $17 million of penalties imposed as a direct result of actions taken by the ABCC. Does that sound like an agency that should be abolished or does it sound like an agency which is doing its job and should be supported?

It is tragic, then, to go to the message from the Commissioner of the ABCC. In the first paragraph he describes how the ABCC is in transition. He says, 'We are in a state of transition to abolition.' The government's industrial relations bill will come to this place shortly, and I seek leave to continue my remarks later in relation to this annual report.