Today, at the Australian Public Sector Anti-Corruption Conference in Darwin, commissioners of the 10 independent anti-corruption and integrity agencies around Australia announced the Fundamental Principles of Australian Anti-Corruption Commissions.
The 12 principles provide a framework for legislation and policy governing anti-corruption and integrity commissions. Each principle is considered fundamental to the ability of an anti-corruption or integrity commission to undertake its functions independently and effectively.
The 12 fundamental principles state that commissions must have:
1. the ability to receive and consider referrals from anyone
2. the ability to commence an investigation on the commission's own motion
3. a mandatory reporting obligation for the heads of public sector agencies to report suspected corruption
4. protections for whistleblowers and witnesses
5. coercive powers to obtain information and evidence
6. the ability to refer matters to a prosecuting authority
7. the ability to make recommendations
8. the ability to report on investigations and make public statements
9. a corruption prevention and education function
10. a sufficient and predictable budget
11. transparency of appointments
12. effective and proportionate oversight
This announcement follows a collaborative review by Australia's anti-corruption commissioners of the best practice principles originally released in December 2022.
A key addition to the original principles is principle 4: Protections for whistleblowers and witnesses. A person who refers information or gives evidence to a commission should be immune from any criminal, civil, administrative or disciplinary liability, and from the enforcement against them of contractual rights or remedies, for doing so.
Principle 8 emphasises that a commission must be able to effectively communicate its work to the community, through public statements and reports. This is important to expose corrupt conduct, to identify matters which may present a corruption risk, and to clear the air of unfounded allegations of corruption.
The 12 principles are informed by the Jakarta Principles for Anti-Corruption Commissions, a set of principles to ensure the independence and effectiveness of anti-corruption agencies, as part of countries´ commitments and obligations under the United Nations Convention against Corruption (UNCAC), to which Australia is a party.
View the 12 fundamental principles here in more detail.
Naomi Loudon
Acting Independent Commissioner Against Corruption
