Speaker 1: Today's biggest News from The Australian. I'm Claire Harvey with
Speaker 1: the Front's afternoon headlines. Corruption in the union movement is
Speaker 1: an awkward issue for the Labour Party and Victorian Premier
Speaker 1: Jacinta Allen has lost her temper in a spectacular way
Speaker 1: with journalists who were asking about allegations of rampant dodginess
Speaker 1: in the Construction, Forestry, Mining and Energy Union the CFMEIU.
Speaker 2: No, no, no, no, you're not. Could I ask that you
Speaker 2: retract that last comment.
Speaker 1: It's all about a giant taxpayer funded one hundred billion
Speaker 1: dollar infrastructure program in Victoria called Big Build. Last week,
Speaker 1: an investigation into the Victorian branch of the CFMEU found
Speaker 1: the huge Big Build program was the root of criminality
Speaker 1: involving the union. Jeffrey Watson sc said in his report
Speaker 1: the union descended into rampant crime and violence, saying it
Speaker 1: had become a violent, hateful and greedy rabble that consorted
Speaker 1: with serious criminals, including outlaw motors gangs. Watson said physical
Speaker 1: threats of violence or death were made to officials, including
Speaker 1: the administrator of the Union, ACTU leader Sally McManus, and
Speaker 1: federal ministers as well as journalists. He also accused the
Speaker 1: union administrator, a barrister appointed by the Albanese government, of
Speaker 1: ordering him to strip out criticism of the Victorian Labor
Speaker 1: government from the report. That's descended into a slanging match
Speaker 1: between Watson and senior Victorian government ministers, accusing one another
Speaker 1: of unprofessionalism. On Thursday, Alan said at a media conference,
Speaker 1: anyone who's been a victim of union wrongdoing should go
Speaker 1: to the police, and a reporter asked why she sounded
Speaker 1: uninterested if you look since.
Speaker 2: I'll make two points on this and can I ask
Speaker 2: that you retract that last point? No, I know you're not.
Speaker 2: Could I ask that you retract that last comment? This
Speaker 2: is an incredibly serious matter that I'm working incredibly hard on.
Speaker 2: I'd ask for this press conference to continue us at
Speaker 2: your track that last observation.
Speaker 1: Victorian Opposition later Jess Hill said the right course of
Speaker 1: action was clear.
Speaker 3: Every single non government political party supported the Liberal National's
Speaker 3: motion to call a royal commission into CFMME misconduct. Today
Speaker 3: we've heard that Labor backbenchers and Labor ministers are also
Speaker 3: calling on the Premier to call a royal commission.
Speaker 1: Allan also denied her own Party wanted a Royal commission
Speaker 1: into the issue.
Speaker 2: I want to make it absolutely clear that no one
Speaker 2: in the caucus has raised with me matters regarding the
Speaker 2: calling of a Royal commission. A claims don't stack up.
Speaker 2: There has already been a Royal commission that failed. And furthermore,
Speaker 2: when Liberals call for a Royal commission, it's all about
Speaker 2: wanting to clawback workers' wages.
Speaker 1: This story is live right now at the Australian dot
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Speaker 1: biggest story in the world right now, the giant American
Speaker 1: armata preparing to attack Iran and what would happen next.
Speaker 1: See you right here Friday morning.