Royal Commission into union corruption confirmed

Updated April 23 2018 - 8:44pm, first published February 9 2014 - 9:47am

Attorney-General George Brandis says a Royal Commission into trade unions will tackle the "systemic", "ingrained" corruption in the labour movement.

And he has accused federal opposition leader Bill Shorten, a former trade union leader, of opposing a Royal Commission because he was the "nominee of the trade union movement".

Senator Brandis confirmed on Sunday the announcement of a wide-ranging judicial inquiry was imminent, declaring it would be "irresponsible for the government not to respond in an appropriate way" to public concerns.

The inquiry would examine allegations of impropriety at the health services, construction and Australian workers unions.

"You have judicial inquiries or royal commissions where there is a systematic and ingrained cultural pattern within an institution that needs to be exposed," he told Sky News.

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