State Government postpones plan to wipe bikies from building industry until after royal commission report into union corruption
Good news, now if the fuckhead triumverate was to die before December, all may be well again!
- The Courier-Mail
- June 16, 2014
The new laws were due to come into force in just two weeks and could have forced every tradie to undergo a police background check.
Hundreds of plumbers, builders and electricians had until July 1 to relinquish any ties, or even friendships, they might have with motorcycle gang members or face deregistration under the legislation — which would have seen police share criminal intelligence with regulators.
However Attorney-General Jarrod Bleijie has confirmed the State Government will “wait for any possible findings from the royal commission into union corruption before launching its new anti-criminal gang licensing program”.
The royal commission must report by December 31.
“Since the legislation was passed, there have been more allegations across Australia about building and construction trade unions’ links to organised crime and there is now a royal commission investigating possible corruption by those unions,’’ Mr Bleijie said.
“Our reforms have already made huge headway against the gangs and reduced crime but there may be further issues that need to be addressed when the royal commission’s report is handed down, so it’s prudent to wait.’’
The Electrical Trades Union — which had threatened to take the State Government to the High Court over the legislation — welcomed the “back down’’.
“It’s a bloody good thing,’’ ETU state assistant secretary Keith McKenzie said.
“They should back down because the legislation is unpopular.’'
The union predicted the amendments would hit about 200 of its 15,000 members.
“Basically, someone could be targeted because they know someone, who knows someone,’’ Mr McKenzie said.
“A member might be singled out because they went on a charity ride with their dad or grandfather. They might be deemed to be an associate of a bikie under the legislation.”
While the ETU wants the legislation abandoned altogether, that seems unlikely.
“Criminal gang members who have a trade or want to get into one should use this as an opportunity to put that criminal life behind them and show that they have genuinely moved on,’’ Mr Bleijie said