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The Guardian - AU
The Guardian - AU
National
Benita Kolovos Victorian state correspondent

Labour hire firm paid Mick Gatto more than $1m to secure work on Big Build, CFMEU inquiry told

Mick Gatto
Melbourne underworld figure Mick Gatto. Photograph: James Ross/AAP

A labour hire company accused of being a front for underworld figure Mick Gatto paid him more than $1m over nine years, with its lawyer telling an inquiry it did so to secure work on Victorian government Big Build sites where the construction union had influence.

Integrity expert Geoffrey Watson SC appeared before the Queensland inquiry into the Construction, Forestry and Maritime Employees Union (CFMEU) on Friday, defending his Rotting from the Top report, which alleged Gatto controlled several M Group companies through “dummy directors” Michael Portia and Tony Paragalli.

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