Rex Patrick (SA, Independent) Share this | Hansard source

I seek leave to move a motion relating to the consideration of Australian Federal Integrity Commission Bill 2021, as circulated.

Leave not granted.

Pursuant to contingent notice, I move:

That so much of the standing orders be suspended as would prevent Senator Patrick moving a motion to provide for the consideration of a matter, namely a motion to provide that a motion relating to consideration of the Australian Federal Integrity Commission Bill 2021 may be moved immediately, have precedence over all other business until determined and be determined without amendment or debate.

It has been 1,077 days since the coalition announced that they were going to bring ICAC legislation to the parliament. We've waited and waited and waited, and nothing has come. Whilst it's not normal to want to interrupt the normal running of Senate business, you reach a point where you say: 'Enough is enough. The wait has been too long.'

There are a number of allegations in relation to the coalition. I stress that they're allegations—I'm not going to impugn anyone—but I will just put on the record that the Australian public have had a number of concerns in respect of coalition members and ministers. There has been Mr Taylor in relation to the $80 million sale of strategic water purchases, Senator McKenzie in relation to sports rorts and Mr Dutton in relation to au pairs. We've seen Mr Joyce also involved in controversy over water purchases. We've seen Mr Frydenberg in relation to 'grassgate', Mr Fletcher in relation to a $10 million grant, Mr Sukkar in relation to issues of expenditure of public money and Mr Tudge in relation to the car park rorts. There is a whole range of affairs. We have seen the situation where Mr Porter has received money through a blind trust. That's almost unfathomable in a situation where we have openness and transparency.

From an integrity perspective and a confidence perspective, it's really important to make sure that the public are able to see our transactions and how we might be influenced in terms of our votes. All of that has to be on the table for people to see. Until such time as we get some form of independent commission against corruption, an Australian federal integrity commission, these concerns will linger.

I know there are people on the other side of the chamber who object to the various different models. They don't want public hearings. They don't want particular people included in the scope of a federal ICAC, or, indeed, certain matters relating to corruption excluded from the definition. These are all things we can debate. These are all things we can talk about and debate, but we haven't had the opportunity. It has been 1,077 days and we've not had the opportunity to do that. The Australian public have been waiting for this, so there is now urgency. There is urgency, in that we basically have to force the government to comply with their own promise.

To satisfy the demands of the Australian public, they said that they would introduce ICAC legislation. They made that a promise as they went into the last election. You get to a point where you say, 'Sorry, you can't have us wait any longer.' We know the difficulties and the complexities associated with these sorts of bills. Indeed, we know that these sorts of bills need to be fleshed out in committees. We've already had one, through the Greens, fleshed out in a committee. The government is basically absent without leave on this.

The test that an integrity commission is strong enough is that you have no referrals because no-one would dare do anything that looked like misfeasance or malfeasance or corruption or misuse of funds and those sorts of things. That's what happens when you have a really strong ICAC. If you have a weak ICAC, people still try to play at the fringes. It still allows and permits corruption, political corruption, to occur. That's why it's important that we deal with this bill today, to get the whole thing kicking along—a comprehensive bill that is endorsed by judicial officers and eminent professionals in the integrity field. I ask that the Senate support my motion to suspend standing and sessional orders.