Labor out of ideas about solving the corruption they’ve covered up

Another day, another massive exposure of corruption, rorting and organised crime on Premier Jacinta Allan’s Big Build, or Big Rort, infrastructure program.

Once again, the open secret of union corruption, of violence against women, and drug use on taxpayer-funded worksites has shown how much this Labor Government has lost control of law and order and how in thrall they are to their union bosses in the CFMEU.

Following fresh reports of ongoing criminal misconduct on Victorian major project sites, Premier Allan announced this week the immediate establishment of Operation Hawk – a “new” Victoria Police taskforce to probe the allegations.

We then learnt, from Victoria Police themselves, that Operation Hawk is not new and, in fact, has been operating for the past nine months.

This begs the question: was the Premier not across the details? Or was she misleading Victorians to make it look like her government was doing something?

Either answer is not a good look.

Jacinta Allan has been the Premier, or the Minister responsible for Major Projects, for a decade. It is beyond belief that she, her department or her staff had no idea about what was going on as they poured billions of dollars into these projects.

Bikies are infiltrating taxpayer-funded projects, employing standover tactics and ripping off taxpayers.

Labor’s Big Build is billions over budget, yet somehow there’s still money for CFMEU-controlled “training programs” that benefit bikies.

I’ve said before in these pages that taxpayer dollars deserve respect because they were hard-earned.

While Victorians are struggling with a cost-of-living crisis, Labor’s CFMEU mates are using taxpayer money to throw barbecues and boxing matches for bikies.

A future Liberals and Nationals Government will end Labor’s Big Build corruption by establishing Construction Enforcement Victoria, a new industry watchdog, to prevent rorts, waste and criminal infiltration on taxpayer-funded major projects.

We need a tough cop on the beat to make sure that what we have seen happen, encouraged even, under this 10-year-old Labor Government can never happen again.

We know this approach works.

After the damning Trade Union Royal Commission report was released, the former federal Coalition Government re-established the Australian Building and Construction Commission (ABCC).

When the ABCC was established, the number of working days lost due to industrial disputes in construction plummeted from around 58,000 to less than 5000.

The moment the current Federal Labor Government got elected they did what the CFMEU asked, and abolished the ABCC, the number of working days lost due to industrial disputes skyrocketed and is back up around 48,000 at December 2024.

Victorians deserve to have confidence that their government is delivering value for money on the infrastructure our city and our state desperately needs.

They don’t have that confidence under this Labor Government, who see taxpayer projects as ways to help their mates in the corrupt construction division of the CFMEU.

This needs to change, and only the Liberals and Nationals can be trusted to deliver that change.

Evan Mulholland MP is the Liberal Member for Northern Metropolitan Region and Shadow Minister for Major Projects. •