Politics · Australia · 5 hrs ago
South Australia upper house to consider inquiry into South Road project
South Australia's upper house will vote on Wednesday on a parliamentary inquiry into major government projects.
The inquiry would examine allegations that bikies tried to influence the Torrens to Darlington South Road upgrade, a $15.4 billion project.
The allegations involve labour hire company Career Boss Australia, which won a contract to supply workers in mid-2025.
Businessman Robert Cammarano says a bikie coerced the transfer of company shares, but the claims are disputed and are due to be tested in court.
The inquiry would look at when government officials learned of concerns and how they responded.
Police say they have found no evidence of organised crime infiltration in public infrastructure projects, and Premier Peter Malinauskas says he has received the same advice.
The Greens and One Nation will support the Liberal motion, giving it enough backing to pass if the vote proceeds as expected.
South Australia’s upper house is set to vote on a parliamentary inquiry into major government-funded projects, including the Torrens to Darlington project.
The Liberal Party’s motion gained enough support to pass after Greens MLC Robert Simms said he would back it, with One Nation also supporting it.
The inquiry’s proposed terms include examining allegations of organised-crime influence and when ministers and agencies became aware of concerns.
The scrutiny follows allegations that a bikie coerced the transfer of shares in Career Boss Australia, a labour hire company contracted to supply workers for the South Road upgrade.
Police have said they found no evidence of organised-crime infiltration in public infrastructure projects.
- Who
- South Australia’s upper house is due to consider the inquiry motion, backed by the Liberal Party, the Greens and One Nation.
- What
- The motion would establish a select committee to examine major government-funded projects and related concerns.
- When
- The upper house is due to vote on Wednesday. The article was published on November 10, 2026.
- Where
- South Australia.
- Why
- The inquiry would examine allegations of organised-crime influence on government projects and how ministers, offices and agencies responded to concerns.
Inquiry supporters
Labor
Need for inquiry
Inquiry supporters
Liberal Party, Greens and One Nation support a select committee to examine allegations and government responses.
Labor
Labor has previously indicated it is unlikely to support the inquiry, citing an ICAC evaluation.
Purpose of scrutiny
Inquiry supporters
Greens MLC Robert Simms said the allegations need investigation and raised questions about who knew what and when.
Labor
Premier Peter Malinauskas said the government had no particular reservations about genuine examination, but questioned whether the push was political or genuine.
Labor and the Greens voted down an earlier One Nation bid for a parliamentary inquiry into government-funded infrastructure projects.
Career Boss Australia won a contract to supply workers for the South Road upgrade.
Allegations about Career Boss were brought to the attention of the chief of staff to Transport Minister Joe Szakacs and Child Protection Minister Alice Rolls.
Robert Cammarano launched Supreme Court action, alleging a bikie had coerced the transfer of company shares.
Career Boss’s contract was suspended after News Corp reported the court action.
Greens MLC Robert Simms said he would support the Liberal Party’s inquiry motion.
- Project value
- $15.4 billion
- Company
- Career Boss Australia
- Contract awarded
- Mid-2025
- Court action
- October 12
- Contract suspended
- October 18
- Inquiry vote
- Wednesday
What people are saying
We've been concerned about these allegations, obviously they need to be appropriately investigated
No, we didn't have any of those discussions.
But it's also a question of what extent is it being political versus genuine, and that's the examination we have to make
We're happy to cooperate with anyone that wants to see more transparency for taxpayers in this state