A corruption watchdog’s explosive findings have thrown Victoria’s signature infrastructure program, the Big Build, into crisis, with claims up to 15 billion dollars in taxpayers’ money has been lost through rorting, criminal infiltration by CFMEU personnel and the state government’s inaction.
A report by esteemed integrity expert Geoffrey Watson SC has found:
There is no doubt the government knew… but it is equally clear that the government did nothing about it.
Watson’s report, Rotting from the Top – The CFMEU in Victoria During the Setka Era, commissioned by the CFMEU administrator, Mark Irving KC, alleged the Victorian branch of CFMEU “was no longer a trade union, it was a crime syndicate”.
The controversy stems from a report into the CFMEU’s Victorian branch that alleges the union’s conduct on major government projects helped drive about 15 billion dollars in extra costs across the state’s 100‑billion‑dollar Big Build program. The report, authored by corruption investigator Geoffrey Watson SC for the CFMEU administrator, describes the Victorian construction division as having morphed into a group operating like a crime syndicate, with links to outlaw motorcycle gangs and organised crime. It details claims that key Big Build sites were used as drug distribution hubs and that lucrative jobs were traded, with even basic labouring roles attracting very high pay and overtime.
Two chapters of Watson’s report were redacted before publication, but later emerged through interstate inquiry proceedings, revealing a rough estimate that CFMEU‑related conduct may have added around 15 per cent to the overall cost of Big Build works. Watson said the figure was based on industry views that union‑linked overruns could be between 10 and 30 per cent, and he described his 15 per cent estimate as “not unreasonable” and possibly conservative. The redacted sections also alleged the Victorian government knew about the scale of misconduct on major projects but failed to act because of the union’s industrial power and the political imperative to deliver infrastructure.
Premier Jacinta Allan has described the CFMEU conduct outlined in the report as “sickening” and “disgusting” but has rejected the 15‑billion‑dollar cost figure as untested. She has insisted she only became aware of the systemic nature of the problems after media revelations in 2024, at which point she referred matters to the state’s anti‑corruption commission and police, and backed the CFMEU’s Victorian branch being placed into administration and suspended from the Labor Party. The government has so far declined to commission its own independent verification of the 15‑billion‑dollar estimate, arguing investigations are already under way through existing agencies.
Economists and policy experts are divided over the headline number. RMIT emeritus professor David Hayward has questioned whether criminality alone can explain such a large share of Victoria’s cost overruns, pointing instead to rising materials prices, engineering complexity and broader construction inflation. However, Fair Work Commission general manager Murray Furlong told a federal parliamentary hearing that the 15‑billion‑dollar estimate was broadly consistent with information relayed by Victorian officials, lending weight to concerns that the financial damage may be substantial.
Seizing on the fallout, Opposition Leader Jess Wilson has labelled the saga the biggest corruption scandal in Victoria’s history and pledged a royal commission into the CFMEU and the Big Build if the Coalition wins the next election.
Ms Wilson has called on Premier Jacinta Allan to front up and explain why she placed her own personal political interests above her duties as Minister and Premier – and tell Victorians why crooks and bikies have been allowed to get their hands on $15 billion in taxpayer funds.
“This is the equivalent of over $5,000 for every Victorian household – a morally indefensible waste of taxpayer money’, says Ms Wilson.
“$15 billion could pay for over 130,000 police officers, nurses or teachers”, Ms Wilson adds.
Draft terms of reference released by the opposition would task a judicial inquiry with uncovering “every cent” of the alleged 15‑billion‑dollar loss, tracing where the money went, probing links to organised crime and determining “what Premier Jacinta Allan and her ministers knew, and when.”
The opposition has also moved in parliament to ramp up pressure through fresh referrals to the anti‑corruption watchdog and demands for government documents related to the redacted report.
Ms Wilson has also committed to set up a strong construction sector watchdog if she wins government later this year.
The scandal now poses a dual challenge for the government: defending its record on integrity while preserving public confidence in an infrastructure program that has reshaped transport across the state. As investigations continue and political attacks intensify, the future of Victoria’s Big Build—and the full truth of how much was lost, who knew, and who benefited—will likely be decided in courtrooms, inquiries and, ultimately, at the ballot box.