NACC Bill gets cross-party support - What will this mean for Federal investigations of corruption?

On 10 November a joint Senate and House of Representatives parliamentary committee (including Government, opposition and cross-bench representatives), delivered a unanimous advisory report in support of the Federal Government’s National Anti-Corruption Commission Bill 2022 (NACC Bill).

The parliamentary committee’s report opens the way for the NACC Bill to be passed before the end of the year and for the National Anti-Corruption Commission (NACC) to be established by the middle of 2023.

So where to now? 

There will be some aspects of the NACC Bill that will be debated and agitated, especially around the holding of public and private hearings and compulsory production powers, but the principles of the Bill have broad support.

Some of the key elements to be aware of include: 

• The NACC will have retrospective powers. The NACC will investigate serious or systemic corruption that occurred before its establishment, as well as after.

• The NACC will investigate serious or systemic corrupt conduct across the entire federal public sector and entities that engage with it.

• The NACC will have broad jurisdiction. It will be able to investigate Ministers, parliamentarians and their staff, public servants, statutory office holders, government agencies, government contractors and their employees, people and bodies performing functions on behalf of the Commonwealth and any person that adversely affects the honest or impartial exercise of a public official’s functions or duties.

• The NACC will make findings of fact, including findings of corrupt conduct, but not make determinations of criminal liability. Findings that could constitute criminal conduct will be referred to the Australian Federal Police or the Commonwealth Director of Public Prosecutions.

• The NACC’s findings will be subject to judicial review.

• The NACC will be able to conduct own motion investigations and to receive referrals, including mandatory referrals from agency heads.

• There will be protections for whistleblowers.

• Finally, the NACC will have powers to compel production of documents and things and search premises, intercept telecommunications and use surveillance devices.

 What’s next? The government is still facing some calls for changes from the cross-bench and claims that the substance of the NACC diverges from what was promised during the election campaign, especially around the “exceptional circumstance” and “public interest” tests. There are also questions on funding that will need to be tackled to deliver what the government promised would be a powerful, transparent and independent body. 

We will provide further information on NACC as the legislation and establishment of NACC progresses.

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The contents of this article do not constitute legal advice and it is not intended to be a substitute for legal advice and should not be relied upon as such.  It is designed and intended as general information in summary form, current at the time of publication, for general informational purposes only.  You should seek legal advice or other professional advice in relation to any particular legal matters you or your organisation may have.

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