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Big Build royal commission LIVE updates: Big Build project, CFMEU under microscope as state’s long-awaited construction royal commission begins

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Cite

Schelle, C. (2026, November 8). Big Build royal commission LIVE updates: Big Build project, CFMEU under microscope as state’s long-awaited construction royal commission begins. The Sydney Morning Herald. https://www.smh.com.au/national/victoria/big-build-royal-commission-live-updates-big-build-project-cfmeu-under-microscope-as-state-s-long-awaited-construction-royal-commission-begins-20261109-p61c7n.html?ref=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_source=rss_feed

Dated from the outlet's own feed. Check the original for its byline.

The Sydney Morning Herald · collected 2026-11-08 · by Caroline Schelle

Quick Summary

The Victorian Royal Commission into the Integrity of Major Public and Civil Infrastructure Construction Projects began its public hearings, focusing on the Gap Road project where the CFMEU took control from the AWU after a work stoppage. The commission has already received 28 public submissions, held 24 private hearings, issued 121 notices to produce, and collected over 110,688 documents. Former premier Jacinta Allan may be called as a witness regarding her involvement when she was minister for transport during the Gap Road project takeover by the CFMEU.
Written by AI on 2026-11-10, from this article's own text only (the story summary below draws on all the coverage).

AI analysis

Story summary

Victoria's Big Build royal commission began public hearings on November 9, 2026, to investigate alleged corruption and misconduct tied to major construction projects. The $100 billion initiative, spanning new roads, railway stations, and tunnels, has faced accusations of criminal activity and corruption. Over the next two weeks, Commissioner Christopher Kourakis and his team will examine evidence from witnesses and documents in Melbourne, focusing on a 2022 level crossing removal project at Gap Road in Sunbury, north of Melbourne.

The hearings revealed that the CFMEU (Construction, Forestry and Maritime Employees Union) wielded significant influence over the Victorian government. A construction company testified to fearing retaliation from union officials if workers did not comply with their demands. Additionally, it was disclosed that two labor hire companies donated to the Labor party after being pressured by the CFMEU, securing them contracts on the Gap Road project.

The commission has already reviewed more than 110,000 documents, indicating extensive preparatory work before these public hearings. Witnesses' identities are kept confidential until they testify, and all proceedings will be livestreamed for public access.

Written for “Big Build Royal Commission Inquiry” on 2026-11-10, grounded in this article and the 7 other(s) covering the same event.
Why this leaning score
The article's own words the score was based on. Each is quoted verbatim and was checked against the article text before being stored, so you can find it in the original.
Reading Leans left (beta estimate) Confidence medium
Leaning: leans left for article 136945 (medium confidence, 2 verified quotes) · logged 2026-11-10

Story

Big Build Royal Commission Inquiry
Politics · 8 article(s) covering the same event. See how they differ ↓

Compared with similar articles

This article reads leans left and hedges 9% of its claims. Each row says how that neighbour differs.
What to expect from Victoria's construction corruption royal commission Same event
ABC News (AU)
Leans left Hedges 4 of 22 claims Outlet record 67/100
Live: Victoria's Big Build royal commission gets underway Same event
ABC News (AU)
Leans left Hedges 1 of 14 claims Outlet record 67/100
Fast-talking, sure-footed and not copping a failure to comply Same event
The Sydney Morning Herald
Leans right further right than this Hedges 1 of 33 claims Outlet record 61/100
‘We will smash you’: Allan warned CFMEU takeover would cause $400m blowout Different event
The Sydney Morning Herald
Leans right further right than this Hedges 5 of 53 claims Outlet record 61/100
“Article A describes live updates about the start of the royal commission and statistics released by it, while Article B details warnings given to Jacinta Allan regarding a union takeover's potential cost increase, based on hearings at a later time.”
Victoria's Big Build inquiry hears CFMEU threatened to 'smash' subcontractor Different event
ABC News (AU)
Hedges 0 of 24 claims Outlet record 67/100
“The articles describe different stages of the Big Build royal commission: Article A mentions general statistics and potential future evidence from former premier Jacinta Allan, while Article B covers specific allegations heard during the first day of public hearings.”
Dozens of CFMEU stoppages in a week before rail site takeover, hearing told Different event
ABC News (AU)
Hedges 3 of 33 claims Outlet record 67/100
“The articles cover different aspects of the royal commission, with Article A providing general updates and statistics while Article B focuses on specific testimony regarding safety concerns at a construction site.”
‘Do deal or lose work’: Minister’s office freeze-out threat to builder over union disputes Different event
The Sydney Morning Herald
Hedges 4 of 43 claims Outlet record 61/100
“Article A provides general updates and statistics about the construction royal commission, while Article B focuses on specific testimony regarding a contractor's dispute with the CFMEU.”
CFMEU ‘enjoy a significant level of influence’ over Victorian government, Big Build royal commission hears Different event
The Guardian
Hedges 6 of 42 claims Outlet record 65/100
“Article A provides an overview and statistics about the royal commission's work leading up to public hearings, while Article B reports on specific evidence presented during the hearings regarding the CFMEU’s influence over the Victorian government. They cover different aspects of the same broader event but not the exact same specific incident.”
Big Build royal commission LIVE updates: First Gap Road level project witnesses to testify at construction royal commission Different event
The Sydney Morning Herald
Hedges 0 of 3 claims Outlet record 61/100
“Article A provides general statistics about the royal commission's progress, while Article B focuses on the first witnesses to testify specifically regarding the Gap Road project.”
CFMEU’s guiding of company cash to Labor under microscope Different event
The Sydney Morning Herald
Leans strongly right further right than this Hedges 1 of 32 claims Outlet record 61/100
“The articles discuss different aspects of investigations and hearings related to the construction industry, but do not describe the same specific incident.”
How this article was measured signals, leaning charts, publisher record, byline, topics and claims

Signals How these are calculated →

Claims extracted
22
sentences that state something as happening or true
Uncertain
9%
2 of 22 hedged ("reportedly", "may", "according to")
Leaning
Leans left
of the writing, not the subject · beta estimate
Publisher signals
61/100
The Sydney Morning Herald's corrections and hedging, across everything collected from it. Not a measure of accuracy.
Outlets on this story
8
Politics
Same framing elsewhere
1
articles that frame the event the way this one does
Analyzed 2026-11-10 · how these are computed

How this is being covered How these are calculated →

Article leaning vs. publisher reliability
Source leaning vs. consistency

Publisher

The Sydney Morning Herald · 6622 article(s) · 15 correction(s) detected
Running correction rate · 15 correction(s)
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Who wrote this

Caroline Schelle
10 article(s) here · 1 carrying a prediction
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2026-11-09 · assertive framing · Big Build royal commission LIVE updates: First Gap Road level project witnesses to testify at construction royal commission
3 more will become available on the 1st of every month.
2026-11-08 · assertive framing · Big Build royal commission LIVE updates: Big Build project, CFMEU under microscope as state’s long-awaited construction royal commission begins
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Also by Caroline Schelle
Big Build royal commission LIVE updates: First Gap Road level project witnesses to testify at construction royal commission
2026-11-09 · The Sydney Morning Herald
Schools to lose thousands in disability support payments
2026-10-28 · The Sydney Morning Herald
Student caught using ChatGPT in VCE exam among 109 investigated for cheating
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Nothing else under this byline is closely related to this article, so these are simply their most recent.
All 10 articles by Caroline Schelle →

Topics

B K Labour CFMEU CPB Victorian the Australian Workers Union

Subjects

CFMEU ORG · 6× Allan PERSON · 4× Adam Carey PERSON · 3× Jacinta Allan PERSON · 2× Victorian NORP · 2× B K Labour ORG · 1× CPB ORG · 1× Joe Myles PERSON · 1× John Holland PERSON · 1× the Australian Workers Union ORG · 1×

Narrative

For the next two weeks, Commissioner Christopher Kourakis AC and his team will grill a string of witnesses as they seek to uncover the extent of alleged corrupt conduct that infiltrated the Victorian Labor government’s Big Build, how much the state knew and what it did about it.
framing: assertive · carried by 1 article(s) · first seen 2026-11-10
3 more will become available on the 1st of every month.
2026-11-10 · The Sydney Morning Herald
Big Build royal commission LIVE updates: Big Build project, CFMEU under microscope as state’s long-awaited construction royal commission begins · assertive framing

Claims (22 extracted, 2 hedged)

You've used all of your gift articles. asserted
You → use → articles
3 more will become available on the 1st of every month. asserted
3 → become → month
The commission on Friday released statistics showing it has already done plenty of work in private ahead of this week’s public hearing block. asserted
it → release → block
Public submissions received: 28 Hearings held: 24 Notices to produce: 121 Enquiries received: 51 Documents received: 110,688 9.27am asserted
Documents → receive → 110,688
Former premier Jacinta Allan could be called to give evidence to the commission at some stage. uncertain
Allan → call → stage
Allan was minister for transport when the CFMEU took over the Gap Road project. asserted
CFMEU → take → project
The project was completed by an alliance that included infrastructure construction companies CPB and John Holland. asserted
that → complete → companies
Insiders told this masthead earlier this year that Allan’s office placed implied pressure on the consortium to work with the CFMEU. asserted
office → tell → CFMEU
“We definitely got a call saying: ‘Can you work with the union or not? asserted
you → get → union
The minister wants to know’,” one source involved in the project reportedly said. uncertain
source → want → project
The consortium insisted that requests to meet with the union be put in writing, after which a meeting with union leader Joe Myles took place and a deal was made. asserted
deal → insist → place
The deal included the use of B K Labour, a hire firm favoured by the CFMEU whose owners were later charged with financial crimes but avoided conviction, and were instead fined $3000 in court for creating a false document. asserted
owners → include → document
Allan has steadfastly denied she or her office intervened in the project to support the CFMEU. asserted
she → deny → CFMEU
Why is the royal commission examining Gap Road? asserted
commission → examine → Road
What happened at Gap Road, and why has the commission focused its first public hearings on this project? asserted
commission → happen → project
Workers on the level crossing removal project were initially covered by an enterprise agreement negotiated by the Australian Workers Union. asserted
Workers → cover → Union
But following a two-day work stoppage on June 6 and 7, 2022, rival union the CFMEU wrenched control of the project from the AWU. asserted
union → follow → AWU
The rail consortium building the project then acceded to CFMEU demands that it employ the union’s favoured labour hire firm and its health and safety representatives on site. asserted
it → build → site
For the next two weeks, Commissioner Christopher Kourakis AC and his team will grill a string of witnesses as they seek to uncover the extent of alleged corrupt conduct that infiltrated the Victorian Labor government’s Big Build, how much the state knew and what it did about it. asserted
it → grill → it
The hearings come at a pivotal time in Victorian politics. asserted
hearings → come → politics
Premier Ben Carroll called the commission in August, days after rolling his predecessor Jacinta Allan as leader. asserted
Carroll → call → leader
Today he leads a caretaker government that is trailing the Coalition and just two points ahead of One Nation in recently published opinion polls. asserted
that → lead → polls
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