Victoria needs to adopt a 'broken Big Build theory' to fix crime harming small business.

In the 1990s Rudy Giuliani was swept into office as Mayor of New York to clean up crime. His pitch was the 'broken windows theory' that petty crime created a permissive environment for greater lawlessness.

Victoria is suffering this problem in reverse. The Allan Labor government has become the enabler of corruption on the Big Build, so no one thinks they’ll enforce the law against shoplifters and violence in retail stores.

Last week it was confirmed that the Victorian government was briefed three years ago that cartel kickbacks were common practice on Big Build projects to access contract work.

Graft now greases the relationships between contractors, the CFMEU and organised crime.

Elected representatives should be aghast. In Victoria the Minister responsible got briefed, shrugged their shoulders and was voted Premier.

Ironically, the same day it was revealed the Premier Allan turned a blind eye to corruption the latest crime data was also released.

Those that let loose organised crime have overseen an unprecedented explosion in the disorganised alternative.

Every type is skyrocketing. Motor vehicle thefts. Aggravated burglaries. Overall offences.

The rate of crime is smashing small business confidence. Retail thefts have doubled in the past five years from 23,976 in 2020 to 41,667 in 2025. There's a reason Victoria has the highest unemployment in the nation.

National crime statistics showed Victoria comfortably led the retail theft pack with a 29 per cent increase in the past year.

Myer has reported a 40 per cent increase in retail thefts. Coles is the same in Victoria. Woolworths is reporting a 26 per cent increase in instore violent threats, with half coming from Victoria alone.

Retail crime could be dismissed as petty and disorganised crime. But it isn’t.

As Chris Rodwell from the Australian Retail Council has identified, "organised crime networks and prolific offenders are driving much of the damage [with] data from retail crime reporting company Auror shows 10 per cent of offenders last year were responsible for over 60 per cent of the total harm and loss".

The culture of crime on the shop floor is modelled on the construction site cartel.

Victoria needs a comprehensive crackdown and it starts with the Allan government no longer tolerating cartel kickbacks on Big Build projects.

If the Allan government won’t change broken windows nor Big Build corruption, then Victorians must change their government.

Published in the Herald Sun, Tuesday 30 September 2025