Premier Jacinta Allan is under intense pressure to step down after a report revealed the Victorian government may have ignored widespread alleged corruption within the Construction, Forestry, Maritime, Mining and Energy Union (CFMEU).
Opposition Leader Jess Wilson called the report a “failure of leadership” and demanded Allan explain why taxpayer money was allowed to reach bikies and organised crime figures on Big Build projects.
Wilson said the $15 billion wasted equates to over $5,000 per Victorian household and could have funded thousands of nurses, police officers, or teachers.
“Clearly, as Minister for Transport Infrastructure and now Premier, she has been utterly compromised in her ability to take action against the CFMEU.”
An investigation by anti-corruption expert Geoffrey Watson SC detailed systemic misconduct within the union, including bribes, extortion, and links to organised crime. Watson told a Queensland inquiry the government’s inaction had cost taxpayers an estimated $15 billion, with some estimates suggesting losses could reach $30 billion.
The report, released amid explosive reporting in The Age, also highlighted that sections linking the CFMEU to the Victorian Labor government were removed prior to publication. As per report, Mark Irving KC, the administrator tasked with reforming the union, admitted to ordering the deletions, which allegedly covered government inaction and the union’s ties to criminal networks.
Watson said he was “angry” about the removal of these sections, which suggested both the Andrews and Allan governments were aware of serious misconduct but failed to act. “Much of that $15 billion has been poured directly into the hands of criminals and organised crime gangs,” the report stated.
Veteran journalist Neil Mitchell described the revelations as the worst scandal he has seen in 50 years of covering Victorian politics.
Speaking to SkyNews Australia, he argued that Allan, who served as Infrastructure and Transport Minister for nine years before becoming Premier in 2023, either ignored the misconduct or was incompetent in failing to address it. “The Premier’s got to step down. She really must step down,” Mitchell said.
“Either she knew and turned a blind eye, or she didn’t know and was incompetent.”
The CFMEU administrator confirmed the allegations have been referred to the AFP, Victoria Police, the Fair Work Commission, and other relevant agencies.
Meanwhile, Victorian Attorney-General Sonya Kilkenny defended the government’s efforts to tackle corruption in the construction industry. Kilkenny told ABC Radio Melbourne:
“You can see from the actions we’ve already taken, when we acted really swiftly to eradicate this kind of rotten culture that was exposed in parts of Victoria’s construction sector.”
Watson’s 136-page report also included shocking allegations of inappropriate conduct on construction sites, such as the hiring of strippers as cleaners and claims of drug distribution. He described the Setka-era CFMEU as a “crime organisation” that had grown too powerful for anyone to challenge.
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