House debates Questions without Notice
Construction, Forestry and Maritime Employees Union
Tim Wilson Goldstein, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Small Business
2:58 pm
My question is to the Prime Minister—or this guy. The Albanese Labor government decided not to deregister—
Unidentified interjection - Hansard doesn't record who said this
Government Members:
Government members interjecting—
Mr Tony Burke Watson, Australian Labor Party, Leader of the House
On a point of order, there are times when abuses of the standing orders are by people who know it's an abuse yet are completely deliberate. I put to you that this is one of those times.
Milton Dick Speaker
When we address each other, we address each other by titles, without descriptors. It's just about showing a level of respect and decency. The member is going to be called again. He won't use that sort of terminology when he is ever asking a question again; otherwise, we'll just move to the next question.
Tim Wilson Goldstein, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Small Business
The question is to the Prime Minister. The Albanese Labor government decided not to deregister the out-of-control CFMEU and to instead appoint an administrator. Now CFMEU boss Michael Crosby has called on his union to break into the New South Wales residential building sector, saying:
… the builders who are going to get that state government money are not our builders … the challenge for us is we've got to get into that non-union sector.
Will the CFMEU's plan to unionise the New South Wales residential housing sector increase prices or decrease prices?
Anthony Albanese Grayndler, Australian Labor Party, Prime Minister
3:00 pm
I thank the member for his question. We, on this side of the House, are the only political party in here that actually took action against the CFMEU construction bans. Those opposite presided over 10 years of growth in the power of John Setka, in the CFMEU construction branch.
Three weeks after I became Leader of the Labor Party, in 2019, I kicked John Setka out of the Labor Party. And during the last term—
Milton Dick Speaker
Order! The member for Forrest and the member for Fisher are going to cease interjecting—it's just not appropriate. Just show some decorum.
Anthony Albanese Grayndler, Australian Labor Party, Prime Minister
And, during the last term, we took action to remove the power of people—someone like John Setka, who had gone from controlling the branch to then controlling the South Australian branch, de facto as well, had increased his power in the union. In the labour movement, the construction branch of the—
Opposition members interjecting—