Speaking at a joint Queensland Chamber of Commerce and Queensland Tourism Industry Council lunch in Brisbane on Wednesday, Senator Abetz also encouraged business leaders to take the fight to workers’ unions.

Senator Abetz told the 200 guests there was confusion between the Fair Work Commission and the similarly named Fair Work Ombudsman.

But while he supported a name change for the former, Senator Abetz conceded it may be some time off.

“That is why it is my view it should have been called the Australian Industrial Relations Commission, rather than this Orwellian name of the Fair Work Commission,” he said.

“But, believe it or not, we’ve got a lot of things on our agenda rather than changing the name at this stage, but there is confusion between the two.”

When the Gillard government changed the name of the national industrial relations umpire from Fair Work Australia to the Fair Work Commission last year, it cost taxpayers about $100,000.

Senator Abetz called on Queensland’s business leaders in the room to follow the example of Boral and Grocon and “show leadership in what is a very, very difficult space” to stand up to unions.

“Today can I invite you to look at the leadership shown by Grocon and shown by Boral, willing to take on the unions and say that illegality is illegality and you won’t stand for it,” he said.

“That if you are being blackmailed, you won’t quietly pay the money but you will in fact blow the whistle, call it for what it is and say it has no place in workplace relations in the 21st century.

“And for those of you who aren’t being blackmailed, please don’t take advantage of those of your fellow businesses in the same space who are being blackmailed into deals to try to get a commercial advantage.

“Because at the end of the day if you feed the crocodile, the only reason you’d be feeding the crocodile is in the hope that you would be eaten last and it is neither smart or ethically correct to behave in that manner.”

Senator Abetz said he still considered himself to be leader of the opposition in the Senate, but expected that to change on July 1 when the new Senate takes effect.

“Most of the [crossbench] senators of the Palmer United Party, Family First and the Liberal Democrat senator from New South Wales, in general terms, represent the centre-right of Australian politics,” he said.

“I am relatively hopeful things such as the carbon tax and mining tax can be and will be repealed, that the Australian Building and Construction Commission will be re-established and that we will be able to get on with our agenda.”