Submission on the Commonwealth Integrity Commission draft legislation, 8 February 2021
Growing public concern about corruption and misconduct erodes trust in government and weakens democracy.
The Federal Government’s commitment to establish a Commonwealth Integrity Commission (CIC) is welcome.
But the design of the CIC is extremely important for its actual and perceived effectiveness. The draft legislation excludes some powers required for an effective CIC.
Adequate funding is also important. The funding currently allocated for the CIC is likely to limit the effectiveness of the public sector division.
The Government should address these deficiencies before establishing the CIC. A poorly resourced and narrowly focused CIC is unlikely to be effective at weeding out corruption and serious misconduct.