A new commission will be established to investigate bad behaviour by MPs and ministers in the Victorian parliament next year.
A joint investigation by the state’s integrity bodies into branch stacking in the Labor Party recommended a parliamentary integrity commission be established last year, to investigate allegations of misconduct by politicians.
The government said it is the “most significant” overhaul of parliamentary oversight in the country.
It comes after several years of pressure mounting on Labor to clean up integrity.
“This is every member of parliament’s workplace, but it is also too a workplace for so many other staff and for too long the standards haven’t been kept pace with modern expectations,” Victorian Premier Jacinta Allan said.
“We have to make sure that we have in place an integrity framework and a reporting framework particularly in cases of workplace harassment, particularly of a serious nature, that victims can feel that they have a process … where their complaint will be handled sensitive but thoroughly.”
The integrity commission would be made up of a panel of three people.
“This is important to ensure that we have a panel of commissioners that have a range of skills to consider the breadth of issues that may come to them for their consideration,” Ms Allan said.
“It’s critically important that that workplace has over the top of it the most modern framework to support staff, and to support members of parliament to perform at their very best.”
Members of the public would also be able to bring issues to the commission under the framework.
Attorney-General Jaclyn Symes said current systems, or lack of, could deter people from making complaints, and that it was hoped the new proposal would change that.
The state opposition said it was concerned the proposed parliamentary watchdog would not have broad enough powers to stop bad behaviour among politicians.
Shadow Attorney-General Michael O’Brien told ABC Radio Melbourne the commission should also be able to investigate political staffers.
“There does need to be some accountability,” he said.
“We’ve seen the government and Labor party MPs using and abusing taxpayer resources for party political ends.
“It has to end, it has to stop and I don’t think it’s going to stop unless there are real consequences at the end of the day but so far we haven’t seen any of those.”
He said any misconduct that has an ongoing impact, no matter how far back it occurred, should be investigated.
“What we’re concerned about is that the government has been dragging their heels on implementing recommendations of IBAC, the ombudsman and Operation Watts,” he said
“I think it’s important this sort of process deals with real breaches of parliamentary ethics and parliamentary codes of conduct.”
Operation Watts was the first ever joint investigation conducted by IBAC and the Victorian Ombudsman looking into allegations of branch stacking involving the misuse of public funds.
It examined allegations of misuse of electorate offices, ministerial office staff and resources for branch stacking and other party-related activities.
A parliamentary ethics committee and a parliamentary integrity commissioner were both key recommendations of Operation Watts.
(ABC)
