Victoria’s anti-corruption agency has excoriated the MPs who monitor its operations, accusing them of leaking confidential correspondence and compromising ongoing investigations.
In a submission to the state parliament’s integrity and oversight committee, the Independent Broad-based Anti-corruption Commission (IBAC) complained that Labor MP Harriet Shing, the committee’s former chair, had failed to respond to IBAC commissioner Robert Redlich’s “grave concerns” about the committee’s work.
IBAC commissioner Robert Redlich is concerned with how the state parliament’s integrity commission is run.Credit:AAP
The cross-party committee has been examining IBAC’s witness welfare protocols since February. The inquiry was prompted by the suspected suicide of former Casey mayor Amanda Stapledon, who was being investigated as part of IBAC’s probe into alleged land rezoning corruption at the council.
The committee, whose role is to oversee integrity agencies, called for public submissions from people with experience dealing with IBAC. Some used the opportunity to submit their misgivings about the commission’s interaction with witnesses, some of which were leaked to media outlets including The Australian.
“IBAC has grave concerns about the procedure that the committee has followed in undertaking its inquiry, which in IBAC’s view has involved a significant departure from established principles of procedural fairness,” IBAC’s submission, dated July 15, said.
“We are aware that a number of confidential communications that were invited and received by the
committee have been leaked to the media. Some of these leaks plainly relate to confidential
submissions that contain adverse allegations and comments about IBAC’s conduct in respect of
ongoing investigations and specific witnesses.”
New minister Harriet Shing (right) with Governor Linda Dessau.Credit:AAP
“Despite IBAC’s repeated requests to have the opportunity to be heard on the matters raised in those submissions, the committee has refused to allow IBAC that opportunity, either in a public or private forum.”
The corruption agency has become a focal point of political debate in Victoria, where integrity is expected to be a key pillar of the November election.
IBAC has interviewed Premier Daniel Andrews in at least two investigations, including one into Labor’s “unethical” culture. It has publicly called for more funding and removing the power of the government of the day to set its funding, both of which the opposition has committed to.
Shing was appointed minister for water, regional development and equality in June. The committee has now had five different Labor MPs as chair since the 2018 election.
The witness welfare inquiry has been controversial at times, including when Shing demanded committee administrators “cut the feed” when Liberal MPs asked Redlich why Andrews was questioned in private hearings rather than in front of a camera.
IBAC believes that the committee’s decision to call for submissions would naturally lead to people involved in ongoing investigations writing to the committee. The agency’s concern was that it would not be able to respond to any allegations because of the ongoing investigations and that once the allegations were leaked to the media it would be powerless to respond to the negative coverage.
The IBAC submission indicates the committee previously claimed it had been abiding by section 7(2) of the Parliamentary Committees Act 2003 which prohibits the committee from prejudicing investigations.
“The claim that the committee sought to, and has complied with, section 7(2) is simply wrong,” IBAC’s submission states.
“The response makes no attempt to explain how the profound procedural unfairness would be
addressed arising from the fact that the committee’s reason for announcing an inquiry was to
explore matters relating to an ongoing investigation.”
Redlich has requested a private hearing with the committee to address claims that IBAC puts undue pressure on people it is investigating, arguably contributing to poor mental health.
“Despite raising these issues on multiple occasions, the correspondence received to date from [Shing] has been unresponsive and/or has reinforced the concerns highlighted above,” IBAC’s submission reads.
The Andrews government declined to comment.
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