A bombshell report that includes allegations the Victorian Labor government turned a blind eye to union corruption and cost taxpayers billions has been referred to police.
The Construction, Forestry and Maritime Employees Union’s administrator, Mark Irving, on Wednesday released the full report to authorities, after suggestions it had initially been redacted to remove allegations that could damage Victoria’s Labor government.
Irving said barrister Geoffrey Watson’s final report into the militant construction union’s Victoria branch contained “serious allegations of criminal and improper conduct”.
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“These matters have not been determined by a court or tested through criminal proceedings,” Irving said in a statement.
“For that reason, the report will be referred to the AFP, Victoria Police, the Fair Work Commission and other relevant law-enforcement agencies and regulators.”
Irving said the report had been released so authorities could take “whatever enforcement action they consider appropriate” as the CFMEU entered a “new chapter”.
The full findings emerged amid calls for Irving’s sacking, after allegations the report was redacted to remove findings that suggested the state government “cowed” to the CFMEU.
Entire chapters were ditched, after reporting the government had a close relationship with the CFMEU and did nothing when union officials allegedly worked with organised crime figures at major projects.
The report claimed the CFMEU’s actions had increased costs, estimating it cost Victorian taxpayers upwards of $15bn.
“This final Watson report on Victoria forms an important historical record,” Irving said.
“It will provide an ongoing reminder of corruption that was harmful to workers, members, unions and the whole construction industry.”
Irving took the reins of the union when it was put into administration nationwide in 2024, amid claims it had been infiltrated by bikies and organised crime figures.
Watson doubled down on the claims regarding its Victoria branch when he returned to give evidence at Queensland’s inquiry into misconduct in the construction industry in Brisbane on Wednesday.
“If somebody had stomped on this, they could have stopped it,” he told the inquiry.
“I’m going to prove that to you – because they’ve stopped it, the administration has stopped it – it’s largely fixed the problem in 12 months.”
Victoria’s attorney general, Sonya Kilkenny, earlier refused to respond to the allegations until the federal report was released.
She said her government had not seen the report and was unaware of its contents.
“We are taking steps to eradicate this kind of … illegal behaviour on our construction sites,” she said.
The opposition leader, Jess Wilson, accused the government of turning a “blind eye” and suggested the premier, Jacinta Allan, was “utterly compromised”.
“She cannot continue to deny knowledge or fail to take responsibility,” she said.
Federal Liberal frontbencher Tim Wilson called for the workplace relations minister, Amanda Rishworth, to sack Irving.
“The CFMEU administrator … has overseen the removal and redaction of sections of a report … that has highlighted the corrupt cartel network that sits between the CFMEU and the Labor party,” he said.
Rishworth said the administrator had done more to clean up the union than the Coalition had during its entire time in government.
“Mr Irving has been clear and transparent about why parts of the report had been removed and it is because he was not satisfied that they were well founded or properly tested,” she told parliament.