Monday, 2 March 2026

Herald Sun

Gangster Government funnels billions to crims.

 

The extent of corruption flowing from the CFMEU-Labor cartel shows there is no respect for taxpayers from our gangster government.

Normally, Victorians don’t look to Queensland for direction. But last year the Queensland government commissioned an inquiry into corruption in the Construction, Forestry, Mining and Energy Union (CFMEU).

In the early stage of the inquiry a report was tabled from anti-corruption crusader, Geoffrey Watson SC, into the scale of the corruption and violence in the Queensland division of the union.

Some of the most disturbing claims were from public servants who made allegations after the election of a Labor government in 2015.

According to the allegations, CFMEU officials stood over public servants “and shouted for about five minutes … ‘I am your boss now’ … ‘you’ll take your directions from me’ and added ‘you’re now working for us’.” Watson concluded “it seems that the CFMEU thought it was, or at least should be, running the Queensland government”.

It gives an insight into the union’s influence, and the cartel relationship between the CFMEU and Labor.

But it is nothing compared to Victoria. Watson subsequently completed a report into the Victorian division of the union. The claims in the report are so disturbing the CFMEU tried to stop the report becoming public.

They succeeded initially in stopping two chapters being released that specifically focus on the cartel relationship between the union and the Victorian Labor government.

Fortunately, as a result of the Queensland inquiry, Watson’s report was released and he appeared before a public inquiry.

In hearings, Watson outlined that the CFMEU’s conduct added between 15 and 30 per cent to the cost of Big Build projects.

Watson outlined that “somebody who gets a little lost in this is the Victorian taxpayer who is footing the bill … (and) the people were benefitting from this were criminals”.

When Watson was asked whether the money “heading in the direction of the CFMEU was ultimately finding its way into the pockets of organised crime outlaw motorcycle gangs and criminal associates”, his short answer was “yes”.

When it was put to Watson that the Big Build will cost about $100bn, which meant he estimated the volume of Victorian taxpayers’ dollars flowing to organised crime is between $15bn and $30bn his answers were “yep” and “yes”.

The problem isn’t just the dollar figures. It is what is lost. While Victorians struggle to pay their bills, our hospitals are overcrowded and the number of potholes on our streets grow, the taxes we pay are being funnelled to criminal networks.

Watson continued that he “was especially hurt when (he) found that a lot of these projects were being partially funded by the federal government”.

Yet when Prime Minister Anthony Albanese was asked in parliament what steps he had taken to ensure that Australian taxpayers’ money hadn’t been handed to organised crime, he refused to answer. The Prime Minister also refused to refer the report to the National Anti-Corruption Commission. And so far the Victorian Anti-Corruption Commission has dismissed any attempt to investigate the matter.

But the real problem is the Victorian government. Documents show when Premier Jacinta Allan was the minister responsible for the Big Build, she knew the projects were being accessed by organised crime through the CFMEU, including selling off work rights.

Allan did nothing as the minister, and feigns outrage when she is asked about it as Premier.

Meanwhile, disclosures show Labor continues to take CFMEU donations while it turns a blind eye to their corruption.

Federally, the Prime Minister swore Labor would no longer accept CFMEU donations, but recent AEC disclosures revealed some state divisions were still cashing their cheques. Victorian Labor took $1.5m. The CFMEU’s $1.5m down-payment for $15bn in return is a 10,000 per cent return on investment.

The scale of the corruption is difficult to believe. Yet the cartel hides in plain sight.

The first step is acknowledging you have a problem: Victorians need to accept that the cartel we have is a gangster government, and voting it out is only the first step to ensure it never returns.

Tim Wilson is shadow treasurer and Federal Member for Goldstein.

ENDS