A Victorian Greens’ bill to expand IBAC’s jurisdiction to investigate corruption has passed the Upper House, after all non-government members voted in support of it.
This marks the first Greens’ bill to be passed in any chamber of the Victorian Parliament in almost a decade.
The Ending Political Corruption Bill would empower IBAC to investigate ‘grey level’ political corruption by removing the current requirement that prohibits an investigation unless criminal conduct has taken place.
Around the country the definition of corruption is generally much broader than in Victoria, enabling anti-corruption commissions to investigate ‘soft’ corruption and drive higher political standards.
Notably, the new ³Ô¹ÏÍøÕ¾ Anti-Corruption Commission that opened earlier this year was specifically designed to investigate non-criminal conduct.
Victorian Greens integrity spokesperson, Dr Tim Read, said today’s successful vote sent a clear message to the Victorian Labor Government that the state’s integrity standards needed to be brought up-to-scratch.
He added that IBAC had been hamstrung for too long and that it was time the state’s watchdog was granted the same powers as others around the country.
The bill will now head to the Lower House, where it will almost certainly be voted down given the government-majority make-up of the chamber.
However, passing the Greens’ bill in the Upper House now puts increased pressure on the Government to act, and implement a reform that has been consistently promoted by leading integrity experts including former IBAC Commissioner Robert Redlich AO KC.
As stated by Leader of the Victorian Greens, Samantha Ratnam MLC:
“Today’s historic vote has sent a clear message to the Government that the poor health of our integrity regime must be improved.
“When parties of all stripes agree on this, the Government can no longer ignore the problem.
“And with today’s vote, the writing is now on the wall. This Government must urgently act to bring Victoria’s integrity standards up-to-scratch.”
As stated by Victorian Greens integrity spokesperson, Dr Tim Read:
“While IBAC remains hamstrung in what it can investigate, political corruption will persist in Victoria.
“For too long Victoria has fallen behind the rest of the country when it comes to parliamentary integrity.
“Without stronger checks and balances, how can Victorians trust in the integrity of government decisions?
“Our bill would give the anti-corruption watchdog more teeth and bring it in line with other watchdogs around the country, so it can better investigate political corruption.”
