CFMEU measures delayed as negotiations drag on

There is uncertainty over what sanctions CFMEU officials will face and when the union will be taken over by an outside director, as legislation to enforce compliance stalls.

Business groups are urging the Opposition and Greens to immediately pass legislation giving the minister the power to install an administrator for the CFMEU’s construction and general division, following allegations of criminal links.

Innes Willox, director of the Australian Industry Group, called on the government to “clean up what has become a cancer on our economy and on the trade union movement itself”.

He rejected calls from the opposition to deregister the union, “which would only allow the union to operate in a deregulated form” or to launch a new lengthy investigation, which would only delay action.

Australian Industry Group chief Innes Willox says the CFMEU is a “cancer” for the union movement. (Lukas Coch/AAP PHOTOS)

Tasmanian Senator Jacqui Lambie was fiercely critical of the Coalition’s call for an inquiry into the legislation in the Senate, saying it would not produce anything new and would only cause delays.

“I would look forward to having the Comancheros face me and the rebels because there will be no witnesses coming forward,” she said in reference to criminal motorcycle gangs.

“They are afraid… they have lives, they have families.”

She called for an end to the opposition’s political bravado and a timely takeover of the construction union “to finally send these bullies where they need to be”.

Independent Senator David Pocock also called for the laws to be passed as soon as possible, but noted that there were still some issues.

The Labor Party bills, which must be passed by Thursday, would give the minister the power to appoint an administrator and impose heavy fines and prison sentences on union officials who obstruct or frustrate the process.

The Greens have indicated they would rather work with the government to change the legislation than work with the opposition to reopen the matter.

However, negotiations have stalled in what the government wanted to be as painless as possible, while initially hoping the bill would be approved by the Senate on Tuesday.

Jacqui Lambie says there is no point in an investigation because people are not coming forward. (Mick Tsikas/AAP PHOTOS)

Opposition industrial relations spokeswoman Michaelia Cash called Labor’s laws weak and said the process was like “the fox guarding the hen house”.

“You throw a piece of legislation in here and then you demand, without any checks and balances, that we pass it,” she told the Senate, expressing anger at the rushed process.

Industrial Relations Minister Murray Watt called it “more delaying tactics and political games” and said the Opposition and Greens had argued that workplaces needed to be cleaned up and had had the opportunity to do so.

“All Australians are truly disturbed by the continuing revelations coming out, including today more about violence, bullying, intimidation and in the worst cases, criminality and corruption,” he told reporters in Canberra.

“The last thing we need at this point is a new, long-term investigation or evaluation to investigate issues that have been going on for a long time and that have been searched for ad nauseam.”