Pauline Hanson says she is genuinely undecided about whether or not she will support the Turnbull government’s Australian Building and Construction Commission legislation.
The federal government will need her support – and the support of her three One Nation senators – to pass its ABCC bill through parliament, because Labor and the Greens will not support it.
The ABCC bill was used by the Turnbull government as a double-dissolution trigger for the 2016 election after it failed to pass the Senate twice.
Hanson told Sky News on Wednesday that she has recently had meetings about the ABCC legislation with the employment minister, Michaelia Cash, and the CFMEU and Master Plumbers Union, but she had not made up her mind about it.
“We have 1.8 million people in Australia that are associated with the unions. Now they have a right to have someone who is going to represent them as well, in all fairness,” Hanson said on Wednesday.
“Now I’m not saying whether I, at this stage, agree with the ABCC or not. I want to make an informed decision to bring the people along with me [so] they know I’m not going to be railroaded by the government, or the unions.
“My opinion is going to be based on what I think is right for the people and the future of this nation,” she said.
It is understood that unions have been dedicating a lot of resources into courting Hanson’s vote on this issue.
Out of 76 Senate seats, the Coalition has 30 seats. It needs 39 votes to pass legislation through the Senate.
Labor has 26 seats, the Greens have nine seats and there are 11 crossbenchers.
Labor and the Greens plan to vote against the ABCC legislation, so the government will need support from nine of the 11 crossbenchers.
Without the support of Hanson and her three other One Nation senators, the government will not be able to pass the bill.
Hanson said on Wednesday she would like to hold a roundtable discussion about the ABCC legislation – involving unions, the government and independent senators – so the public has an opportunity to understand what the bill is about and why she will eventually decide to support it or not.
Australian Bureau of Statistics data shows there were 1.6 million people in August 2014 who were trade union members in their main job.
