Crossbench concerns over narrow scope of national anti-corruption body

Days out from the likely release of the federal government’s anti-corruption bill, some key crossbenchers are raising concerns it might not be given the level of power they are looking for. Federal parliament will resume next week after a fortnight’s delay due to the death of the Queen, and the government will use the sitting… Read More

‘Unresolved’: Crossbenchers declare sticking points with Labor’s corruption watchdog

Crossbench MPs have declared there are still major sticking points with the federal government’s proposal for a national corruption watchdog as Prime Minister Anthony Albanese tries to avoid breaking a key election promise to legislate the body by the end of the year. The crossbench MPs are worried Labor’s integrity commission will not be broad… Read More

Albanese pushed to pass ‘urgent’ integrity reforms after Queen’s death delays

Independent MPs are urging Prime Minister Anthony Albanese to honour his election pledge to pass laws this year to create a national integrity commission amid growing fears he will miss the deadline and deliver a weaker watchdog than they want. Concern at the delay has spread among crossbench MPs after the government suspended Parliament to… Read More

Law Society of SA calls for ICAC review over concerns rushed legislation fails the pub test

South Australian lawyers say “hurried” anti-corruption laws allow public officials convicted of certain crimes to charge taxpayers for their legal fees, and parliament’s handling of the laws “fails the pub test”. Last week, an ABC exclusive report outlined the implications of a little-understood change to the state’s Independent Commissioner Against Corruption (ICAC) Act. The legislation… Read More

When will there be a federal ICAC or anti-corruption commission? What are the parties promising?

Barnaby Joyce does not think many Australians will actually care that a national anti-corruption watchdog is still a pipedream when they cast their vote. The Deputy Prime Minister’s latest comments on why the Coalition has walked away from its 2019 election pledge to establish a Commonwealth integrity commission show the political calculation made in the… Read More

‘Public hearings expose corruption’: legal experts back federal ICAC as Scott Morrison ditches promise

Integrity experts have backed a public model of a federal corruption watchdog as the prime minister ditches his promise to establish one. Scott Morrison said a federal watchdog hosting public hearings would become a “kangaroo court” that would tarnish people’s reputations. But top silks say a federal model would be ineffective without public examinations with… Read More

Big, big government is running a big, big advertising campaign

By Tom Dusevic, originally published on October 22 in The Australian. You can get it readin’. You can get it drivin’. You can get it scrollin’ your social feed. In 2020, a big, big government is running a big, big advertising campaign. Since April, the Morrison government has launched $135m of new taxpayer-funded advertising to… Read More

Federal anti-ICAC forces ‘to exploit sympathy for Gladys Berejiklian’s plight’

By Stephen Rice, originally published on October 19 in The Australian. The last time Stephen Charles QC heard the words “my little mate” at a corruption inquiry was 34 years ago, as a young barrister probing the scandal that nearly ended the reign of legendary NSW premier Neville Wran. A few days ago he listened… Read More

Louise Waterhouse met with top officials and Angus Taylor over land near Western Sydney airport

Christopher Knaus, originally published in the Guardian on 17 October. Three federal infrastructure department officials and federal MP Angus Taylor separately met with Louise Waterhouse while she lobbied for potentially lucrative changes to her vast landholdings near the Western Sydney airport. The meetings, which anti-corruption experts say are a “rarity for the average citizen”, have prompted calls… Read More