A storm is brewing in Victoria's political landscape, with a construction industry figure, Anthony Ciccone, speaking out against the focus on his company's donation to the Labor Party. He claims that his company is just one of many Big Build firms that funded the government's election campaign, and the real issue is the corruption within the Big Build project.
Ciccone's message to The Age raises an intriguing question: why hasn't the media reported on a major Big Build subcontractor allegedly gifting expensive utes and jet-skis to project managers on the Suburban Rail Loop? He asserts that this contractor was removed from the project for such gifts, which included Toyota SR5 utes and three jet-skis.
The Victorian government's commitment to the Suburban Rail Loop is substantial, with a third of the $38 billion total cost already allocated. The state plans to fund the remaining amount through various levies and taxes.
Ciccone, who owns Cycon Civil and co-owns Project Labour Solutions, questions why other political donors involved in the Big Build haven't been identified. He wonders aloud about the other companies that donated to Labor's signature infrastructure scheme.
The Age's reporting on Tuesday revealed that Victorian Labor received donations from firms now facing police action for suspected corrupt payments or for placing gangland and bikie figures on taxpayer-funded projects. These donors include a traffic management firm on the Big Build program, whose owner has been charged by Victoria Police's anti-corruption taskforce, and another subcontractor facing a federal police probe for allegedly bribing a CFMEU boss.
Premier Jacinta Allan and Prime Minister Anthony Albanese have both stated that donations are a matter for the party, with Allan noting that the donations were lawful and declared appropriately. However, the revelation of this political money trail presents a fresh crisis for the Allan government, which is already under pressure for its handling of allegations of wrongdoing on infrastructure projects.
The donations uncovered by The Age's investigation would not be covered by Allan's CFMEU donations ban, as they come from companies rather than the union itself. These donations would likely have been uncovered by the broad-style inquiry demanded by the opposition and anti-corruption advocates.
The Victorian Election Commission's records reveal individual CFMEU-aligned building company donors who contributed to Labor's 2022 election campaign. These donations came at a time when the union's influence over the Big Build scheme was growing, creating lucrative opportunities for some donors.
Ciccone's own donation to the ALP in 2022 is documented, and his connection to gangland figure Mick Gatto is notable. Gatto has supported Ciccone's labour hire firm, which employs the wife of a former union boss described as corrupt by lawyer Geoffrey Watson. Watson's report also identifies a union delegate with possible Comancheros connections working for Ciccone's company.
Ciccone's Big Build company has further ties to an ex-Finks bikie, Tom Estcourt, who recently faced court for possessing anabolic steroids.
Another donor, traffic management company B K Labour, has also come under scrutiny. Its founder, Bernard Kearney, was charged with fraud over allegedly fake Big Build invoices. Police investigations into 'corrupt payments' and other financial transactions linked to the construction industry are ongoing.
The donations uncovered by The Age's investigation likely represent only a fraction of the funds given by Big Build firms with suspected links to improper behavior or gangland figures. Many of these firms donated directly to the CFMEU, which then gave over $500,000 to the ALP before the 2022 election.
The CFMEU has not revealed which building firms contributed to its election war chest, but multiple sources claim a union faction, including bikie boss Joel Leavett and ex-union boss Myles, pressured firms to donate.
Victoria's corruption watchdog, IBAC, has confirmed that it did not investigate a referral from Premier Allan concerning allegations of organized crime and graft on taxpayer-funded projects, as it was outside its remit. Allan's referral letter, released publicly, detailed allegations of organized crime and favoritism towards CFMEU-linked firms.
IBAC typically does not comment on referrals, but in this case, it confirmed that the matters in Allan's letter were outside its scope.
Allan has faced questions about when she knew that IBAC would not investigate her referral, and whether she should have been aware that her referral would not be successful. She stated that the advice came through her department and that she would need to check the timing.
Both the state opposition and the Greens have backed giving IBAC new powers to follow taxpayer money to subcontractors and labor hire for investigations. The Victorian Greens have said they will release draft laws this week to give the corruption watchdog 'follow the dollar' powers to investigate the use of taxpayer funds in private subcontracting.
IBAC has requested these powers, and a parliamentary inquiry has also recommended their implementation. The construction industry, a major user of subcontracting and labor hire arrangements, has been identified as a sector where much of the graft on taxpayer projects occurs.
Premier Allan has no announcements to make regarding whether her government will grant IBAC the follow-the-dollar powers.
At a press conference, Labor MPs from the western suburbs joined the premier to support her stance. When asked about her support for former CFMEU state secretary John Setka, MP Luba Grigorovitch acknowledged the seriousness of the allegations but stated that she and Setka were close during their time as union secretaries.
The premier continues to dismiss the estimate of $15 billion lost to corruption on the Big Build, rebuffing calls for a royal commission to test the figure. The estimate, backed by Geoffrey Watson and the Fair Work Commission, has been described as untested by the CFMEU administrator, Mark Irving.
Allan claims that these allegations have been dismissed, but she will not say how much taxpayer money lost to corruption would warrant action.
Health Minister Mary-Anne Thomas praised Allan's strong and decisive actions, but when pressed, she claimed the $15 billion figure was not worthy of further consideration.
The controversy surrounding the Big Build and its alleged corruption continues to unfold, with questions remaining about the extent of the problem and the government's response.
