Victoria's Opposition calls on Premier Daniel Andrews to sever ties with CFMEU

Victoria's Opposition has called on Premier Daniel Andrews to sever Labor's ties with the CFMEU after two high-ranking state officials were charged with blackmail.

Victorian CFMEU chief, John Setka, and his deputy, Shaun Reardon, were arrested and charged on Sunday by a taskforce set up to investigate matters arising from the royal commission investigating trade union corruption.

The two are due to appear in the Melbourne Magistrates Court on Tuesday.

Opposition industrial relations spokesman Robert Clark said the Labor Party had no choice but to part ways with the union.

"This is an issue of integrity of Government," he said.

"We've had the CFMEU found guilty of criminal contempt, fined time and time again, now we've got these latest criminal charges."

Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews said the charges were serious but added he would not be dragged into commenting on the case.

"It's not appropriate for the Premier of the day, or any politician frankly, to be running a commentary on matters before the courts," he said.

"There is no doubt these are very serious matters that need to be dealt with appropriately and I won't be saying any more than that because to do so would potentially risk justice being served.

"Anyone who does the wrong thing should feel the full force of the law."

Federal Labor's workplace relations spokesman Brendan O'Connor said he would not comment on the arrests.

"I'm not going predetermine the processes of a matter before the court," he told 774 ABC Melbourne.

"We've said for two years it's always up to police, the public prosecutors and the Australian Crime Commission to investigate serious allegations of misconduct and that's how things should operate."

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2015-12-07/victorian-opposition-calls-state-labor-to-sever-ties-with-cfmeu/7005888

How can he remain connected to a Union so openly brazen in committing illegal acts?

Concerned citizens call on mike baird to cut all ties to the nsw liberal party after 12 coalition mp's caught up in corruption scandal at nsw icac. ;) ;)

he should stand down in shame after it was revealed that the "correct" figure of what he wasted NOT TO BUILD the east west link was 1.1 BILLION DOLLARS  >:(

Same could be said for libs when their colleagues were caught doing illegal things.

Pointless, Armchair, unless ofc you are being a hypocrite.  In which case, it makes sense to keep up the bias.

The Labor party in Victoria are doing an excellent job.    They are leading in the polls and delivering on their election promises.   There is no need to Premier Andrews to do anything at all    The Liberals - on the other hand - continue to dwell in the basement of Parliament House, from which it will take decades to rise out of.  One of the reasons they are in such a lowly position is most of their campaign funds were pinched by a high ranking member of their own governing executive!   

He will and should tell them where to go - and what to do when they get there.

macman wrote on Dec 9^th, 2015 at 11:31am:

Concerned citizens call on mike baird to cut all ties to the nsw liberal party after 12 coalition mp's caught up in corruption scandal at nsw icac. ;) ;)

While not condoning that, that's still nothing compared to Labor corruption.

Only in your mind AP. Corruption is corruption is corruption.

Armchair_Politician wrote on Dec 9^th, 2015 at 11:44am:

macman wrote on Dec 9th, 2015 at 11:31am: Concerned citizens call on mike baird to cut all ties to the nsw liberal party after 12 coalition mp's caught up in corruption scandal at nsw icac. ;) ;) While not condoning that, that's still nothing compared to Labor corruption.

Thats odd as ICAC seems to contradict that statement and before you look the arse again, corruption doesnt have a price figure .