Victoria widens construction corruption probe, pledges more money and time if needed
?s new royal commission into the construction industry has been given a wide brief, and Premier Ben Carroll says the inquiry will not be boxed
Victoria’s new royal commission into the construction industry has been given a wide brief, and Premier Ben Carroll says the inquiry will not be boxed in by its first budget or deadline. If commissioner Chris Kourakis needs more time or money, Carroll says, he will get it.
“My door is open,” Carroll said on Thursday, after naming the former South Australian chief justice to lead the probe into allegations of corruption, criminal conduct and serious misconduct on taxpayer-funded building projects.
Broad powers, broad targets
The inquiry will examine claims of grift, thuggery, violence and criminal infiltration across Victoria’s major public and civil infrastructure work. It has been given coercive powers to force witnesses to appear and documents to be produced, including cabinet material.
That reach matters. It extends into the executive government, meaning former premiers and ministers could be called to give evidence in public hearings, along with public servants, union leaders, building firms and advisers.
Nothing is off limits.
The terms of reference also allow Kourakis to look at allegations tied to the CFMEU, construction companies, contractors, suppliers, labour-hire firms and consortia. Carroll said Victorians deserved to know how organised crime found its way onto building sites, who let it happen and how to stop it happening again.
Budget, deadline and political reach
The commission starts with a $50 million budget and a reporting deadline of Aug. 20, 2027. Carroll brushed aside concerns that the funding and 12-month timetable were too tight, saying the inquiry would get whatever extra resources it needed to do the job properly.
Former South Australian chief justice Chris Kourakis was described by Carroll as “independent, rigorous and fearless”. He will now steer the royal commission into the integrity of major public and civil infrastructure construction projects in Victoria.
Carroll said he had made the commission his top priority after toppling Jacinta Allan last month. He framed the inquiry as a way to expose what has happened on state building sites and to stop it from recurring.
The political stakes are high. The inquiry can reach into past governments, and Carroll has left open the prospect that Allan and Daniel Andrews could be among those called. What comes next will depend on the evidence Kourakis compels into the open.
