MARK DREYFUS
SHADOW ATTORNEY-GENERAL
SHADOW MINISTER FOR CONSTITUTIONAL REFORM
MEMBER FOR ISAACS
PORTER FAILS AGAIN ON INTEGRITY
The Morrison Government has again demonstrated its contempt for integrity, by failing to meet its own deadline for a National Integrity Commission.
Christian Porter has today finally admitted to missing his own deadline to release a draft bill before the end of last year.
Mr Porter is blaming the Christmas break for his latest broken promise, claiming the holiday period is not an ideal time to start a process of public scrutiny.
But he had no such qualms about the draft religious discrimination bill which he publicly released for consultation on December 10.
Its now been 13 months since the Prime Minister and Attorney-General announced they would establish a weak, ineffective and opaque Commonwealth Integrity Commission.
At that time, Mr Morrison insisted work had already been underway on the proposal since January meaning its now been almost two years since the Government claims to have started working on a Commonwealth Integrity Commission.
Yet all the Morrison Government could put forward was a proposal for an integrity commission so weak and so secretive it was derided by legal experts as a sham designed to hide corruption rather than to expose it.
The scandals surrounding Angus Taylor and Bridget McKenzie show why Australia needs a powerful and independent National Integrity Commission and why the Prime Minister and Attorney-General are so determined to delay any action to bring one about.
Unlike the Morrison Government, Labor believes tackling corruption and promoting integrity is essential to restoring public trust in government.
FRIDAY, 17 JANUARY 2020
