Amanda Stoker voted strongly against creating a federal Anti-Corruption Commission

That the Senate—

(a) notes that:

(i) 9 September 2020 marked one year since the Senate passed the Australian Greens' National Integrity Commission Bill 2018 (No. 2) to establish a strong, independent Federal corruption watchdog,

(ii) polls consistently show that the majority of Australians support the establishment of a strong national anti-corruption body,

(iii) the Government has not brought the Greens' bill on for debate in the House of Representatives, and

(iv) despite public consultation ending more than 18 months ago, the Government's exposure draft Commonwealth Integrity Commission Bill fails to address many concerns raised during consultation; and

(b) further notes that an effective anti-corruption body must include the following features:

(i) broad jurisdiction to investigate corrupt conduct within the public sector,

(ii) strong investigative powers,

(iii) the ability to hold public hearings where this is in the public interest,

(iv) the ability to commence investigations independently or based on tip-offs from the public,

(v) adequate and secure funding,

(vi) the ability to publicly report outcomes of investigations and refer potential criminal matters to the Director of Public Prosecutions,

(vii) oversight by a multi-party parliamentary committee, including the appointment of commissioners, and

(viii) investigations subject to procedural fairness, and findings open to judicial review.

That the Senate—

(a) notes that:

(i) the Senate passed the Australian Greens' National Integrity Commission Bill 2018 (No. 2) on 9 September 2019 to establish a federal corruption watchdog with broad remit to investigate allegations of corruption and misconduct, and to ensure strong, independent oversight of the actions of parliamentarians,

(ii) the National Integrity Commission Bill 2018 (No. 2) was sent to the House of Representatives for debate on 10 September 2019, but has yet to be debated,

(iii) on 10 February 2020, the Senate resolved to call on the House to vote on the National Integrity Commission Bill 2018 (No. 2),

(iv) the Government ignored this call and has prevented all attempts to debate and vote on the National Integrity Commission Bill 2018 (No. 2) in the House,

(v) public consultation on the Commonwealth Integrity Commission model proposed by the Government ended nearly eighteen months ago, but the Government has yet to introduce legislation to establish an integrity commission,

(vi) in May 2020, the Attorney-General said that legislation to establish a Commonwealth Integrity Commission would be further delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic, despite an exposure draft being "ready for release", and

(vii) polls consistently show that the majority of Australians support the establishment of a strong national integrity body;

(b) calls on the Federal Government to bring on the National Integrity Commission Bill 2018 (No. 2) in the House of Representatives for a vote in the June 2020 sittings; and

(c) transmits this resolution to the House of Representatives for concurrence.

That the Senate—

(a) notes:

(i) that the Morrison Government committed to implement a Commonwealth Integrity Commission (CIC) on 13 December 2018,

(ii) that it has been 424 days since that commitment and the Morrison Government has still failed to introduce legislation to establish the body, and

(iii) reports that the Member for Wide Bay, Mr Llew O'Brien, has called for the proposed federal anti-corruption body to be given "more strenuous, stronger" powers;

(b) calls on the Attorney-General, Mr Porter, to revise his proposed anti- corruption commission to give it the powers, independence and transparency it needs to effectively combat corruption in the federal sphere; and

(c) calls on the Federal Government to introduce legislation on the CIC as a matter of priority.

(1) That the Senate notes that:

(a) the Senate passed the Australian Greens' National Integrity Commission Bill 2018 (No. 2) on 9 September 2019 to establish a federal corruption watchdog with broad remit to investigate allegations of corruption and misconduct, and to ensure strong, independent oversight of the actions of parliamentarians; and

(b) public consultation on the Commonwealth Integrity Commission model proposed by the Government ended more than one year ago, but the Government has yet to introduce legislation to establish an integrity commission,

(2) That the Senate calls on the Federal Government to bring on the Australian Greens' National Integrity Commission Bill 2018 (No. 2) in the House of Representatives for a vote in the February 2020 sittings.

(3) That this resolution be sent to the House of Representatives for concurrence.

That the Senate—

(a) notes that:

(i) 15 September 2018 is International Day of Democracy,

(ii) Australia's democracy faces systemic challenges in the corrupting influence of political donations and the under-representation of minorities in decision-making positions, and

(iii) Australia's Parliament does not reflect the composition of the Australian population in terms of gender or cultural diversity; and

(b) calls on the Federal Government to:

(i) ban corporate donations from industries with a history of undue influence in Australia's Parliament, such as mining, development, tobacco, alcohol and gambling,

(ii) withdraw proposed electoral funding legislation that restricts the ability of civil society to advocate in the public interest,

(iii) take measures to increase the participation of women and people from minority backgrounds in Australia's political systems, and

(iv) urgently establish a national anti-corruption body with investigative powers to address parliamentary and ministerial misconduct.