Senate crossbenchers are trying to negotiate a compromise with the government over its proposed building industry watchdog in an attempt to avoid a fresh trigger for a double dissolution election.
The Senate has rejected the government’s bid to reconstitute the Building and Construction Commission and has now sent a new version of the same legislation to a committee, but crossbench senators are searching for a compromise that would allow the bill to pass and defuse the government’s threat of a double dissolution election in July.
The Senate committee is due to report back on 15 March – two days before parliament rises for a seven-week pre-budget break. The government has advice that if it is not passed by 17 March this could still constitute “failure to pass”, under the provisions of section 57 of the constitution that set up the circumstances in which a government can call a double dissolution poll.
The government is now considering proposals from the Palmer United party senator, Dio Wang, to soften its plan to give the reconstituted watchdog strong coercive powers to force unionists to give evidence or produce documents. Wang is suggesting a judicial review process before these powers are exercised.
“I’m talking to the government in good faith and I’m keeping an open mind on that issue,” Wang told Guardian Australia.
Several crossbench senators are discussing ways to broaden the commission’s powers to cover illegal activities by business groups as well as unionists. Wang had previously suggested the Building and Construction Commission be broadened to create a national corruption body, similar to the New South Wales Independent Commission Against Corruption.
The Motoring Enthusiast party senator Ricky Muir is also proposing the commission could be broadened to cover “sham contracting” and “phoenixing” – when companies declare bankruptcy to avoid paying workers and subcontractors before resuming operations under another name.
The independent senator John Madigan also called on the Turnbull government to take a broader approach to corruption.
The government is understood to be highly unlikely to consider amendments that broaden the scope of the commission beyond the construction industry.
Nick Xenophon, another independent senator, wants to ensure unions can continue to play “their very legitimate role in ensuring workplace occupational health and safety”.
The government has already said it would consider an amendment from the Liberal Democratic party senator, David Leyonhjelm, so it was subject to an eight-year “sunset clause”.
The crossbenchers believe the government’s willingness to negotiate on these proposals will be an indicator of how serious it is about the double dissolution threat.
As indicated on the parliamentary website, the government already has triggers to call a double dissolution poll, but not high-profile bills that would allow it to make a political case for the decision in the same way that it could use the findings of the Heydon royal commission to argue for the need to crack down on what it calls “union thuggery” in the construction industry.
But calling a double dissolution brings several risks. Malcolm Turnbull would have to call it the day after bringing down the budget on 10 May, and if the government wanted to synchronise elections for the two houses of parliament it would have to be called for 2, 9 or 16 July, after an extremely long campaign. This course would raise questions about passing the supply bills and allowing the opposition leader, Bill Shorten, to make a budget speech in reply.
With Labor and the Greens opposed to the legislation, the government needs six of the eight crossbench votes to pass the building and construction commission bill.
It was guaranteed support from the Family First senator, Bob Day, but he said on Monday he was “in shock” because he had been “unceremoniously sacked” by the government despite supporting it almost 80% of the time. He said he was in “no frame of mind” to even think about voting for government bills but did not rule out doing so.
The government believes support from Leyonhjelm and Xenophon is also likely. That means it needs three votes from among Glenn Lazarus, Jacqui Lambie, Madigan, Wang and Muir.
Of those five, only Madigan would face the voters in a half-Senate poll. In a double dissolution election all Senate seats are contested and under the new Senate voting rules likely to be passed by the government, with the support of the Greens and Xenophon, all run a strong risk of losing their Senate positions.
