July 19, 2024
Speaking to Sky News Australia on Thursday, Mr Paterson claimed Labor had “taken the path of least resistance” in its response to allegations of criminal conduct against the union.
The Sydney Morning Herald recently reported a police camera hidden in the ceiling of the CFMEU’s Sydney office had allegedly captured NSW construction union boss Darren Greenfield “being passed a $5000 bundle of cash as part of a suspected kickback deal”.
Mr Greenfield, who has denied wrongdoing, was charged over the incident and the issue is currently before the courts.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, responding to the allegations, pledged the administrator appointed to the union would have “the power they need to ensure this is cleaned up”.
“We see wrongdoing and we have acted. We’ve acted swiftly to ensure that administrators are put in. If there’s any challenge to that, we’re certainly prepared to legislate to ensure that that occurs, but we think this is necessary,” he said.
However, Mr Paterson said stronger action was needed.
“This is all a bit of a theatre between the union and the government,” he said.
“The truth is the union has won, the government has taken the path of least resistance, done the weakest possible thing and thinks that it is somehow going to reform the CFMEU by importing a public servant to be an administrator of the union that is going to clean it up.
“The CFMEU is unreformable. The reason why the Prime Minister doesn’t want to accept that is that would require him to take tough action in the national interest.”
The Liberal Senator suggested the CFMEU be deregistered to prevent it from “getting a new lease of life” under an administrator, however he was pressed by host Peter Stefanovic on just how effective that method would be.
“When the previous incarnation of the CMFEU was deregistered by Bob Hawke many years ago, it just came back in another form. If it is deregistered again this time, wouldn’t history repeat itself?” Stefanovic asked.
Mr Paterson responded by insisting deregistration was simply the start of what needed to happen with the union.
“Very serious criminal investigations should take place,” he said.
Workplace Relations Minister Tony Burke on Wednesday stood firm against the notion of deregistration, arguing it would be a “gift to the worst elements”.
“If we simply went down the deregistration path, we would have an organisation still capable of bargaining and doing the entire business model we've been seeing reported over recent days with no layer of regulation or additional oversight that applies to registered organisations," he said.
"It would be a gift to the worst elements and I have no intention of going down that path."
