A parliamentary committee that will be established to oversee Labor’s proposed federal anti-corruption commission should be controlled by non-government members and have the power to guarantee the body’s financial independence, crossbench MPs say.
The attorney general, Mark Dreyfus, continued consultations for the integrity commission this week, confirming the government will bring a bill in the September sitting before an inquiry and vote this year.
The independent MP Helen Haines, who was the architect of the crossbench integrity commission bill in the last parliament, told Guardian Australia that it “appears the [Labor government] bill will include a statutory joint committee” which she was “very hopeful” of joining.
“I’m encouraged there will be a joint committee, but we expect more detail to be brought forward about its role in funding.
“We want the national anti-corruption commission to be enduring and well-resourced.”
Crossbenchers have asked for the committee to include and even be chaired by non-government members, and have the power to set the commission’s budget, which would then be approved by the government.
The Greens senator David Shoebridge said “there are some issues that remain unresolved” including “genuine financial independence for the new commission”.
“One of the key features in that is a non-government controlled committee being a core part of this new commission’s budget process.
“We can’t have the commission’s funding strangled by the next government through a black box budgetary process.”
The Independent MP Zali Steggall said the crossbench “did raise that the committee should be reflective of the parliament”.
“There would be more strength in a body that is multi-partisan, not bipartisan.”
A non-government chair would create “the strongest perception of independent scrutiny and an arms-length process”, she said.
Dreyfus has agreed that private entities with government contracts will be within the commission’s scope, but Shoebridge said that “efforts to corrupt government policy, not just contracts” should be covered.
There has also been “progress on the threshold” for investigations, with “serious or systemic” corruption now a trigger, not just “serious and systemic” corruption, he said.
In June, Dreyfus committed to improving whistleblower laws, including to enact changes to the Public Interest Disclosure Act recommended by the Moss review in 2016.
Shoebridge said the Greens’ “strong preference” is to legislate these together with the anti-corruption commission. “Whatever the outcome we need to ensure that world class whistleblower protections are in place before this commission opens its doors.”
Haines said she accepted that not all the “pro-integrity measures” in her own bill will be in Labor’s but she is “encouraged” by the review of whistleblower laws.
She said she wants to see the detail of how whistleblowers will bring complaints to the anti-corruption commission.
“I want all the protections built into my bill to be there in the same way,” she said.
“I remain vigilant, I want to see a strong, well-funded anti-corruption commission with whistle-blower protection.”
