Coalition push to carve Cbus out of Housing Future Fund

A new Coalition bill is aimed at preventing the $10bn Housing Australia Future Fund from doing a business with Cbus Super because of its links with the CFMEU.

NSW Liberal senator Andrew Bragg. Picture: Martin Ollman / The Australian

The Coalition is promoting its own legislation aimed at preventing the $10bn Housing Australia Future Fund from making any co-investments with Cbus Super for so long as the CFMEU may be placed in administration.

Endorsed by shadow cabinet and the Coalition joint partyroom, the legislation was championed by the opposition’s assistant home ownership spokesman, Andrew Bragg, who said the bill was aimed at protecting “taxpayer funds against being plundered by the CFMEU.”

While government legislation passed the parliament this week forcing the CFMEU’s construction divisions into administration, Senator Bragg told the Senate on Wednesday that Cbus Super had three trustees on its board sponsored by the CFMEU.

Cbus has committed $500m over five years to the HAFF to help support the construction of new social and affordable homes, but Senator Bragg told the parliament the Coalition viewed this as a “massive red flag.”

“If it’s good enough to put the CFMEU into administration, then why on earth would we leave taxpayers exposed to the CFMEU’s activities through Cbus,” he said.

“We will move to protect taxpayer funds by legislating that the Housing Australia Future Fund cannot do business with an organisation like Cbus.

“Productivity in the building industry is in the toilet because of the CFMEU.”

ALP president Wayne Swan, the chair of Cbus Super, previously said investing in HAFF would “meet the best financial interests of our members.”

In response to the Coalition bill, Cbus Super said it had “worked with governments on both sides for over a decade on investment models for social and affordable housing.”