Notably, the royal commissioner John Dyson Heydon did not openly seek the extension nor even the adjustment to his terms of reference now granted. Attorney-General George Brandis has granted a 12-month extension to the royal commission into trade unions. Credit:Wolter Peters Indeed on this point he was explicit: "This letter is neither an application to widen the terms of reference nor an application to extend the reporting date," he wrote to Senator Brandis. "Its goal is simply to acquaint you with what the senior staff of the Commission think can be achieved by December, with the difficulties which, in their view, have faced the Commission thus far, and with some possibilities thereafter." Dyson Heydon even appeared to discount the value of a longer inquiry while acknowledging the scope was already sufficiently broad: "It is true that it has not been possible in the short time available, and indeed would not have been possible in a much longer period, to identify every piece of conduct falling within the Commission's terms of reference."

In other words, we haven't uncovered everything the inquiry gave us scope to study and would not be able to with twice the time. Implicitly, however, he may well have sought that expanded remit, for what was the point of the letter if not to invite said broadening? "It is very apparent from what Mr Heydon says in his letter that there is a large amount of unfinished business before the royal commission which from a practical point of view would not be able to be considered satisfactorily were the original reporting date adhered to," Senator Brandis said while unveiling the change. The vibe perhaps? The real reason for the extension now comes to the fore: Simply put, the union royal commission has not yet delivered the political bang for the public buck its champions had so eagerly anticipated.

Simply put, the union royal commission has not yet delivered the political bang for the public buck its champions had so eagerly anticipated Indeed, the "big fish" it was meant to land have wriggled off the hook. Former prime minister Julia Gillard's hours in the witness box discussing her pre-parliamentary work as a union solicitor promised so much but in the end delivered dull TV. There was no smoking gun, no gotcha moment. Ditto it seems for Tory hopes of fatally wounding Opposition Leader Bill Shorten's reputation by linking the former AWU boss materially with dodgy union dealings. Perhaps these objectives will be progressed in the final report - or the interim one even. In the meantime, the process rolls on with taxpayers footing the likely $61 million bill. Loading

That will be money well spent, however, if it comprehensively addresses and resolves a culture of corruption and intimidation within the nation's unions, and the unhealthy influence some of those unions exert within the ALP. Follow us on Twitter