Anne Urquhart (Braddon, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

On this side, we retain full confidence in the administrator, respected King's Counsel Mr Mark Irving. Can I reinforce again, as my colleague did a moment ago, the words of Geoffrey Watson KC—hardly a partisan figure. During the inquiry, after reading reports of coalition calls for the administrator to resign, Mr Watson paused proceedings and said:

There's something I'd like to say …

I might have said some harsh things here today, but in my opinion … I've never met a more honest and decent man.

They'd be mad to get rid of Mark Irving.

The Albanese government has acted decisively to stamp out corruption, criminality and violence within the CFMEU's construction division by placing it into administration, legislation supported by the coalition. These problems are deeply embedded in the industry. They didn't arise overnight—it didn't just happen like that—and they won't be fixed overnight.

Let's be honest about this: the disgraceful conduct outlined in the Watson report, commissioned by Mr Irving under our legislation, flourished under the coalition and the ABCC. After a $61 million royal commission, the same leadership in Queensland, New South Wales and Victoria remained in place for nearly a decade. The ABCC issued fines, and judges said those fines were ineffective. Geoffrey Watson found they were treated as a cost of doing business, and even suggested breaching the law became part of the model. How many leaders did the coalition remove? Zero.

Now compare that with what this government has achieved, with what we've done. In August 2024 the scheme of administration removed the entire elected leadership of the construction division across six jurisdictions, 270 union officers and 12 paid officials. Since then, more than 100 additional staff have been removed or have resigned—the majority in leadership roles. Over half the organisers in Victoria are new, over 90 per cent in New South Wales are new and more than half in Queensland are new. Every individual named in the Watson report has been removed. This is action.

I say this as someone who has spent much of their working life in the union movement: before entering this parliament many years ago, before I was on the other side, I was an organiser for over 20 years and later secretary of the Australian Manufacturing Workers Union in Tasmania. I represented workers in factories, workshops and heavy industry, and I stood on picket lines. I negotiated enterprise agreements. I dealt with employers, regulators and governments of all persuasions. I know the difference between strong representation and unlawful conduct. The overwhelming majority of union members are hardworking people who want safe workplaces, fair pay and dignity at work, but they also want hardworking, honest people representing them. Corruption does not protect workers. Criminality does not advance their interests. Violence does not strengthen unions.

When I was a union organiser, my job was to lift standards to ensure compliance with the law and improve safety and wages, not to undermine the law. Cleaning up the construction industry is not anti-union; it's pro-worker. It's about restoring integrity so that members can have confidence in their representation and so that law-abiding businesses are not undercut. Under this administration, individuals who were fined for assault, illegal blockades, deplorable conduct and even bribery—people who were allowed to retain their roles under the coalition and the ABCC—have been removed. In just 18 months the administrator has achieved more than the coalition and the failed ABCC did in a decade.

But reform doesn't stop here. Following referrals from this government, regulators and law enforcement now have more than 100 investigations underway right across the construction industry. We know problems are not confined to one organisation. Employers and contractors also have responsibilities. That is why we established the National Construction Industry Forum, bringing together government, business and unions. It was unanimously endorsed as a blueprint for reform. Work is underway on a joint industry charter to lift behavioural standards across the sector, including procurement practices.

This is serious structural reform. The shadow minister's attacks on the administrator may make for headlines, but they do absolutely nothing to clean up the industry.

See this speech in context