Murray Watt (Queensland, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry) Share this | Hansard source

tor WATT (—) (): Thanks, Senator Pocock. Again, I respect the fact that are people in that chamber and people in the community who have a different view on this point. But I think anyone who is listening to this debate needs to be assured that, as a result of this historic legislation being passed, we will have, for the very first time in Australia, a national anticorruption commission that is strong, that is independent, and that will dig out corruption within federal politics and federal government. That is a good thing.

It will have the power to act retrospectively. It will have the power to compel the production of documents. It will have the power to hold public hearings in exceptional circumstances. It will have the power to initiate investigations of its own accord, rather than only those investigations that the government of the day wants commenced. I think it would be a disservice if people were to shoot down this historic bill and this National Anti-Corruption Commission, which will do more for restoring public faith in our democracy in Australia than any other institution that this parliament has created.