Victorian Treasurer Tim Pallas was the guest of honour at a CFMEU-organised event attended by controversial union leader John Setka, ahead of which the union boasted that billions of dollars of work would flow to its members and affiliated builders.

The Andrews Labor government has been accused by some industry sources of allowing unprecedented CFMEU access to Victoria’s construction sector at the expense of the more moderate Australian Workers Union in return for financial and political support ahead of the November state election.