Senator the Hon Michaelia Cash
Shadow Attorney-General
Shadow Minister for Employment and Workplace Relations
Deputy Leader of the Opposition in the Senate
TRANSCRIPT
2GB Interview with Michael McLaren
15 July 2024
Topic: CFMEU
MM: You would have heard this this morning with Ray Hadley – an investigation by Nine newspapers and 60 minutes, has uncovered all kinds of serious issues with the CFMEU. Some of this news, some of it, I think, to be blunt, are a reminder of allegations of recent past but the months long investigation uncovered allegations of infiltration by bikies, organized criminals, intimidation, and allegations of corruption. Now, these allegations need to be properly investigated, but from what I understand they seem to extend beyond the problematic Victorian branch that was headed up until recently by John Setka, he resigned from his role on Friday night. Well Michaelia Cash is the Shadow Minister for Employment and Workplace Relations and she’s on the line.
MC: Good afternoon, Michael and good afternoon to your listeners.
MM: Well, there’s a lot of people floating around at the moment in the halls of power and elsewhere in the union movement saying oh, gee, that just shocks us. We had no idea. Here’s Anthony Albanese, you’re speaking just yesterday.
AA: I have a very clear message for the CFMEU which is they need to clean up their act. I have zero tolerance for the revelations that have been made in recent days. They need to be condemned in the strongest possible terms
MM: and of course, Michaelia. Your counterpart in the lower house, Tony Burke: “The extent of the criminal elements that have been there I find absolutely abhorrent absolutely appalling.
MM: So it’s thuggish. It’s revelations. It’s apparent it’s not union behavior. It’s almost like all these people saying oh, we had no idea Joe Biden was losing the plot until we saw the debate.
MC: Oh exactly Michael. They are weak and they are patheticand Mr. Albanese and Mr. Burke have finally been caught out for running a protection racket for the militant CFMEU for years and years and years. Mr. Albanese’s weak leadership when he was in opposition, and now as Prime Minister has enabled as you and I know, the out of control CFMEU to reach a point where we are now seeing revelations that they’ve been deeply infiltrated by bikies, gangland and underworld criminal figures. I mean, this is utterly disgusting, but it is something that we have known for a very, very long time, and Mr. Albanese, quite frankly, and Mr. Burke should be judged on their actions and not their words. Words when it comes to Mr. Albanese and Mr. Burke and the CFMEU – they are cheap. Let’s stop making excuses Prime Minister and start taking action because let’s just remember Michael, what’s the first thing Mr Albanese did when his government came to office? He abolished the Australian Building and Construction Commission.
MM: And who wanted that who wanted that?
MC: Oh, exactly – Mr. Setka. Michael, you’ve got to be kidding me. And $6.2 million in the last four years since Mr. Albanese has been opposition leader has gone from the CFMEU straight into the coffers of the Australian Labor Party. Now, that is actually quite serious, because we don’t know now whether or not any of that money was from the proceeds of crime. And I think Mr. Albanese needs to stand up in front of the Australian people and make it very, very clear to them (a) the Labor Party are handing back all the money that’s been donated to them by the CFMEU in recent years. But also, there needs to be a full investigation into the money trail. There is a question over some of that money possibly being proceeds of crime. And that is why we now need a full investigation. But as I said, in relation to Mr. Albanese and Mr. Burke, Words are cheap. Let’s now judge them on their actions.
MM: Well just to that point, the CFMEU National Secretary Zack Smith has said and I quote him here: “I’m confident that the union’s donations to the ALP are clean.”
MC: But then they’ve got nothing to worry about do they.
MM: I mean, just more broadly, though, I mean, donating to a political party. That’s one thing that’s a problem. I’m not I’m in no way dismissing that. But what impact has this alleged behavior had on the broader economy? And by that I ask Michaelia what sort of inflationary impact has this alleged behavior had on the cost of building at a time when we desperately need to build and are finding it expensive to do so?
MC: And that’s the key issue, Michael, it is the cost to the Australian taxpayer now for years and years and years because of the protection racket run by Mr. Albanese, run by Mr. Burke on the CFMEU. So Australian taxpayers havebasically paid more for the building of important infrastructure that I rely on, you know, whether it be roads, whether it be hospitals, whether it be schools, that in turn leads to further cost of living pressures for all Australians. And it’s just something which Mr. Albanese and Mr. Burkehave been happy for years now to turn a blind eye to. The Master Builders Association they did economic modelling a few years ago, and they actually found that the cost of infrastructure was 30% higher as a result of actions by the CFMEU. And again, that is just something that Australian Labor Party they almost just laughed at. I was the Minister in government – I managed to stand up the Australian Building and Construction Commission, but not with help from Labor Michael. They fought every single step of the way. And if you recall, we also put up as legislation, the Ensuring Integrity Bill to ensure integrity in all registered organizations. And you know, what Labor did, they fought us every step of the way, and we were unable to pass that legislation. So I give Mr. Albanese and Mr. Burke a challenge today. The Coalition stands ready, on the first day that we return in August in the Parliament to pass the legislation to fully restore the Australian Building and Construction Commission. We also stand ready to pass the Coalitions Ensuring Integrity Bill. I challenge Mr. Albanese and Mr. Burke to have that legislation ready to go on the first day back in August and I guarantee we will pass. Now there is a test of Leadership. Is it all words Michael or is it actions and if they want action, the Coalition stands ready to clean up this industry and pass this legislation. The ball is now in Mr Albanese and Mr Bruke’s court. MM: We’re running out of time as it is anyway. Michaelia thank you for your time.
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