Source : Perth Now news
Pressure is mounting on a state government to call a royal commission into the construction industry and its criminal links.
But Victorian Premier Jacinta Allan says a royal commission would cost too much money and take too long to make any difference.
Anti-corruption experts Robert Redlich and Deborah Glass have called in the past week for an urgent royal commission into corruption within the Victorian government’s $109 billion Big Build program.
The Big Build corruption scandal involve allegations that organised crime figures and bikie gangs have infiltrated Victoria’s major infrastructure projects through the CFMEU construction union.
Investigations indicate extortion, violence, and bribery-inflated project costs by $15 billion, with funds allegedly siphoned into ghost shifts, nepotism, and payments to underworld figures like Mick Gatto.
Mr Redlich told The Age newspaper a royal commission was “desperately needed” in order to properly investigate the past decade of culture within the industry.
The Australian Federal Police is probing corruption, money laundering, and organised crime within Victoria’s construction sector.
Barrister Geoffrey Watson’s “Rotting from the Top” report noted that persistent fear has deterred some witnesses from testifying against the union.
Ms Allan, who has repeatedly said allegations of construction sector illegality should be referred to police, has again rebutted calls for a royal commission.
“We’ve already seen in this country a royal commission was held in recent times. It took years. It cost tens of millions of dollars. It went after workers, and it did not change the culture,” Ms Allan told reporters on Monday.
“I am focused on taking immediate action … whether it’s through supporting Victoria Police, who have now laid 93 charges, and the Labor Hire Authority, who have cancelled now 164 construction industry licenses.”
Independent MP Monique Ryan called for a royal commission to ensure transparency in public spending, criticising the Allan government’s integrity regarding the Big Build program during a press conference in Canberra on Monday.
Victorian Opposition Leader Jess Wilson told reporters in Maryborough, north of Ballarat, that the revelations are proof “corruption is continuing to happen today”.
“Jacinta Allan knew that there was corruption happening on Big Build sites. She is the architect of the very system that has allowed this corruption to run rife right across Victoria,” she said.
Federal deputy leader of the opposition Jane Hume called on work to stop on all construction projects until corrupt elements were removed, and the best way to do that was through a royal commission.
The renewed calls follow new reports that companies working on Big Build projects continued making payments to alleged underworld figures despite repeated warnings to the government.
Labor recently gave an “in principle” commitment to review IBAC’s powers in 2027 following an Integrity Oversight Committee (IOC) report.
The government supported 21 of 29 recommendations, including granting the watchdog “follow the money” powers.
Currently, IBAC can only investigate public entities, leaving it unable to probe third parties like contractors or union officials.
The agency has sought these expanded investigative powers since 2017.
