Time for a Federal anti-corruption watchdog

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So say we:

Three quarters of voters say there is a need for democratic renewal in the form of a federal anti-corruption commission and a tougher code of conduct for MPs, as part of wider reforms that would also see a rejuvenated public sector return to service delivery.

However, Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull has played down the likelihood of establishing a federal anti-corruption commission, saying such bodies have mixed records at a state level and that there are already a range of corruption fighting bodies at the federal level.

The Centre for Policy Development has produced a discussion paper on democratic renewal and policy reform based on a survey of attitudes to democracy and government, and a roundtable of 30 eminent citizens.

Black Hole Malcolm made his usual charming noises:

Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull has for the first time suggested he is prepared to consider creating a federal anti-corruption watchdog.

Mr Turnbull said he is not yet persuaded the case has been made for such a body but that “the policy objective is zero tolerance, I take that very seriously”.

With all other parties in the Federal Parliament prepared to support such a body, Mr Turnbull’s government – which has thus far resisted calls from the crossbench, Greens and Labor – is the final obstacle.

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Prepare to be dropped stone cold.

About the author
David Llewellyn-Smith is Chief Strategist at the MB Fund and MB Super. David is the founding publisher and editor of MacroBusiness and was the founding publisher and global economy editor of The Diplomat, the Asia Pacific’s leading geo-politics and economics portal. He is also a former gold trader and economic commentator at The Sydney Morning Herald, The Age, the ABC and Business Spectator. He is the co-author of The Great Crash of 2008 with Ross Garnaut and was the editor of the second Garnaut Climate Change Review.