Premier Jacinta Allan says there is no evidence bikies cashed in on project
Prime Minister Jacinta Allan announced there was no evidence of cyclists making money from the North East Link project as excavation of the first of the $26 billion project’s two tunnels was completed.
Allan’s claim comes two weeks after this masthead revealed a cycling-related company secured contracts as a leading purveyor of women workers in the Labor Party’s Grand Body and three months later milestone report Bribery and bikie gangs have infiltrated major government infrastructure projects, a CFMEU corruption investigation has revealed.
After celebrating the milestone of the North East Link tunnel boring machine surfacing at Bulleen on Sunday, the prime minister told reporters there was no evidence that project funding had resulted in bikes when asked about the allegations.
He said that if evidence emerged that the cyclists were profiting from the project, an investigation would be launched by the police and the Labor Hiring Agency.
“There is no evidence to support this claim,” Allan said in Bulleen on Sunday.
“What I’m focused on is giving Victoria Police and the Labor Hiring Agency the tools and resources they can to ensure that if there is evidence, if there are allegations of behavior for which I have absolutely zero tolerance, those can be investigated.”
explosive in february Decay from the Top The investigation report, prepared by anti-corruption lawyer Geoffrey Watson, SC, revealed that infrastructure projects funded by the Albanese and Allan governments were hosting drug trafficking, systemic corruption and bribery, bikie gangs and the sexual exploitation of women, at an estimated cost to taxpayers of $15 billion.
Age this month it emerged that labor hire company Women in Construction had received contracts with Labour’s Big Build and that it was run by a male drug trafficker who has also been accused of domestic violence and has deep ties to bikers and violent criminals.
The company has supplied dozens of female workers to the state and federally funded North East Link project and has previously supplied up to 250 workers on Big Build rail and road projects, generating an estimated $2.5 million in revenue per week.
Leaked documents He explained that Bandidos Melbourne chapter president Joel Leavitt had instructed Women in Construction to recruit their friends and relatives at Big Construction. At the time, a North East Link spokesman said all contractors were inspected and inspected and any breaches were referred to the relevant authorities.
Allan described the reports as worrying and said the government had zero tolerance for illegal behavior on construction sites, noting that the Labor Hiring Agency had canceled 151 construction industry licences, blocked 48 licenses and Victoria Police laid 88 charges.
The authority referred to the question how many of the canceled licenses were related to the North East Link and did not specify how much money the companies whose licenses were canceled or blocked made from the project. The official has been contacted for comment.
Allan said he was aware of calls for a new independent inquiry but that this would “merely mean that the issue that needs to be addressed is not addressed” and instead pointed to action that includes an obligation on contractors to report relevant conduct. investigation into former public servant Greg Wilson and a safe way for workers to report.
The 10-kilometre North East Link toll road connecting the M80 Ring Road to the Eastern Motorway is planned to open in 2028. Allan said this route will take 15,000 trucks off local roads.
The cost of the project is more than double its original budget, and the federal government last year increased its contribution to 5 billion dollars.
Excavation on the first of the project’s two tunnels was completed at Bulleen on Sunday, after more than 18 months of tunneling work. The other tunnel is planned to be completed in the coming months.
Opposition Leader Jess Wilson has repeatedly called for a royal commission into Big Build corruption allegations and said Victorians deserved to know the truth about where taxpayers’ money was going and who benefited.
Wilson said: “If the Prime Minister is so confident that no taxpayers’ money has ended up in the hands of cyclists or organized crime figures, why doesn’t he call a royal commission?” he said.
“Because he knows Victorians will see the full extent of what goes on at the government’s Big Build sites under his watch.”
Accountability Roundtable secretary Stuart Hamilton said any evidence of improper spending of public funds should be investigated independently of the government to maintain public trust.
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Rachael Ward is a journalist on The Age’s City team. Contact her at rachael.ward@theage.com.auConnect via email.
