Outgoing anti-corruption chief calls for more powers and resources
Departing IBAC chief Alistair Maclean has given an ominous warning on Victoria’s infrastructure boom, while calling for more powers and resources to be given to the corruption watchdog.
VIC News
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Victoria’s fast-paced infrastructure boom has created an “emerging risk” for public sector rorts, the chief executive of the state’s corruption watchdog says.
Alistair Maclean, who is leaving the independent Broad-based Anti-corruption Commissionafter six years, said the agency had set a good platform for weeding out corruption since it began, but was preparing for challenges.
He said securing more money “when the government is facing some really significant budgetary constraints” is one issue, while limits to powers — particularly when it comes to searches and forensics — also posed problems.
“It’s our powers and our resources. There’s no point in having all the power if we don’t have the resources to utilise them,” he said.
As well as the management of road and rail projects being run against tight deadlines, Mr Maclean said other risk areas emerging in Victoria included the outsourcing government services to community organisations, and unauthorised leaking of information.
He said part of the agency’s role was to get “much more on the front foot on emerging risks in public sector administration”.
“An example is public-private partnerships in infrastructure projects,” he said.
“How are they managed, how is the funding allocated, what’s the basis of the tendering, contract management, and so on.”
Police oversight is still an area where IBAC has deficiencies, Mr Maclean said.
“How can we effectively address serious police misconduct without similar powers to the cops? We can’t,” he said.
“Our search powers are not the same. We can search the premises but not the person. We can’t prevent people leaving the country.”
The inability to seize passports was exposed during high-profile public hearings into local government and planning, when Casey councillor Sam Aziz flew to Egypt while facing serious allegations of corruption.
Mr Aziz denies he has acted corruptly, including by pocketing about $900,000 in payments from developer John Woodman.
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Mr Maclean said the IBAC has taken a more conservative approach to public hearings than in other jurisdictions, but that was partly due to “legislative constraints”.
The former diplomat said when he began in the role, he was frequently told that there was no need for a rigorous anti-corruption body in Victoria — a perception that’s been “smashed”.
But he said at the same time, “I think we have built and won a high degree of public trust.”