Construction, Forestry and Maritime Employees Union
Mr HAMILTON (Groom) (13:41): Aggressive, intimidatory and criminal behaviour is nothing new for the CFMEU. Anyone who’s worked on union dominated worksites, as I have, has seen it or its impacts firsthand. For years, this side of the House has been willing to stand up against these behaviours, none more so than the Leader of the Opposition. We’ve been willing to stand on the side of those who’ve experienced these bullying tactics.
Labor’s record on dealing with the CFMEU could not be more different. Rather than calling out their aggression, misogyny and corruption, they’ve turned a blind eye. Labor have taken millions of dollars in donations from the CFMEU, even while CFMEU members have been standing in the docks in the courts facing up to their crimes. Labor have been very happy to have CFMEU members standing on their polling booths handing out for them on voting day, they’ve been happy to give in to their demands to scrap the construction industry watchdog, the ABCC.
Now that the CFMEU’s behaviour has gone so far, Labor are trying to tell us that we should trust them to keep the CFMEU in a box. I do not trust Labor to control the CFMEU, I do not trust the CFMEU and I do not trust the CFMEU on the polling booth.
I call on every member of this government to commit to not having a single CFMEU thug standing out on their polling booths intimidating voters. No Australian should feel afraid to play their part in our democracy. I call on the Labor candidate for Groom to make the same promise to the people of my electorate that they will not be intimidated by union thugs when the next election rolls forth.
