FWA Set to Finally Unveil Findings on HSU Scandal
The Senate may finally have a deeper look on the probe that Fair Work Australia (FWA) has conducted on the alleged questionable practices of Health Services Union (HSU) officials following strong prodding from legislators.
The full details of FWA's investigation could come out on Thursday, according to ABC News, after the earlier release of a summary report that mostly provided rundowns of the violations that were allegedly committed.
No specific names were mentioned in the brief, the ABC report said, as well as revealing details that the Coalition hopes would further shed light on the reported abuses of Labor MP Craig Thomson.
Thomson once headed the HSU prior to his Parliamentary stint and allegations of him using the group's funds for his personal expenses, including the hiring of prostitutes, emerged more than four years ago.
That controversy has been the centre of the long-running FWA inquiry, which members of the opposition said has mysteriously dragged on, possibly due to unseen powerful hands.
Opposition Leader Tony Abbott has been pointing to Prime Minister Julia Gillard as Thomson's likely protector but the Labor leader has consistently denied the allegations, stressing that the embattled Thomson still enjoys her confidence.
On his part, Thomson has strongly denied that he was guilty of the charges, which analysts said if proven otherwise could lead to his expulsion from the Parliament and likely too the collapse of the Labor-led government, which merely holds a fragile majority.
Yet before anybody jumps into conclusion, Commonwealth Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) Chris Craigie issued reminders that the FWA report may not be sufficient for him to determine criminal liabilities for erring HSU officials.
Four HSU officials have been mentioned as likely offenders but Craigie clarified that FWA's work on the matter would not amount to the DPP starting prosecution procedures against the implicated names.
Prosecution, he added, was not in the mandate of the Commonwealth body but his resulting review and recommendations could prompt for further actions on the matter.
Nonetheless, Abbott has expressed optimism that FWA was up to the task and whatever its report contains could lead into something concrete or at least what the public has been expecting for too long.
"Fair Work Australia needs to ensure that the material it has given to the DPP is useful and if in its current form it is not useful, it needs to ensure that the investigation is converted into a brief of evidence that the DPP can use and it must happen now," the Opposition Leader told ABC on Thursday.
Coming out empty-handed, he stressed, could only spawn suspicions that "there is some kind of protection racket operating here."
Meanwhile, the Australian Council of Trade Unions (ACTU) has indicated earlier that it was ready to hand down punishment for HSU by suspending the group from it ranks, which current HSU head Chris Brown said should be weighed on carefully by the council.
While he supports ACTU's apparent distaste of corrupt acts, Brown cautioned that ACTU officials should also consider that sweeping punishment would also impact on the thousands of HSU members.
"It is extremely disappointing that this move is even being considered because it is penalising people who are good hard-working members," Brown told ABC.