ENFORCE SUBBIE LAWS

IN a crowded room at Southport RSL yesterday sat a diverse group of people with one sad slice of common ground — they were all caught up in the broken system that governs the way the construction industry operates.

Sitting there were people who had paid $50,000 each for deposits on homes that will not be built.

Subbies who worked on jobs, paid their staff and suppliers but themselves were never paid.

The toll taken on the economy and those its supports by failures like Cullen Group, Queensland One Homes, Future Urban Residential, Ware Building and dozens more is breathtaking.

Just as jaw-dropping is the ongoing apparent inability for the authorities in charge to work together to take meaningful action to stop it.

The Federal Government are thinking about considering some sections of a Senate Committee report. The State Government have implemented some laws from their own review.

The Queensland Building and Construction Commission says they are restricted in what they can do by the state laws, the Australian Securities and Investments Commission won’t confirm or deny what they are or aren’t investigating, and subbies and home buyers are still being stung.

Houses and livelihoods will be gained and lost while politicians and bureaucrats bumble about the edges fixing bits and pieces but never agreeing on how best to tackle the whole.

The logical first step is for authorities to aggressively enforce the laws they can, right now.

If there is suspicion of fraud, police should step in — every time.

If a builder looks like it’s in financial trouble — its licence should be suspended until it can prove beyond doubt they are good for their debts.

It should not just be up to volunteer groups of tradies to make sure the system works.