Former Morrison minister Stuart Robert’s dealings with consulting firm Synergy 360 and the PwC tax scandal are at the top of the Greens’ referral list for the National Anti-Corruption Commission when it opens its doors on July 1.
The independent agency, led by former NSW judge and war crimes investigator Paul Brereton, is expected to be flooded with referrals from the parliament, the public service and members of the public when it officially starts operating on Saturday.
Justice Paul Brereton will lead the National Anti-Corruption Commission.Credit: Edwina Pickles
Adding to this pile is a Greens wishlist of 10 matters the minor party says should be investigated. However, Attorney-General Mark Dreyfus has stressed the independence of the agency, saying any Australian can refer any matter they believed may have constituted serious or systemic corruption, but “only the commission can determine what matters it investigates”.
The Greens’ pledge to refer Robert, who resigned from the parliament in May, is in line with the view of several former judges and integrity experts that the former cabinet minister should be on the new watchdog’s radar. This follows months of revelations in parliament about Robert’s help for consultancy firm Synergy 360, which sought lucrative deals with federal agencies.
Greens justice spokesperson David Shoebridge said the party’s 15 MPs would work across their portfolios to prepare formal referrals in the coming months, adding that matters like the PwC scandal would test the scope of the watchdog’s remit to investigate third-party contractors.
“This list shows just how much work there is to be done by the NACC [National Anti-Corruption Commission] with cases involving gross misuse of grant money, cosy relationships with contractors and tender practices that are so broken they are utterly lacking in integrity,” Shoebridge said.
He said the NACC needed to investigate “further and deeper” into Robert’s dealings with Synergy 360 after a federal government review found that $374 million in taxpayer funds had been spent on contracts linked to Synergy 360 that had question marks over them for conflicts of interest, poor value for money and inadequate record-keeping.
Robert was contacted for comment. He has previously denied helping Synergy 360 and its clients win government work and denied any conflict of interest while he was a minister. Further, this masthead is not suggesting that Robert was paid for his advice and assistance.
The NACC will open with 180 staff, many of them absorbed from the Australian Commission for Law Enforcement Integrity, which will fold into the new agency, and will build up to 270 staff over the next two years. It will be headquartered in Canberra and have branches around the country, with permanent offices to open from September.
Other matters on the Greens’ wishlist include a raft of issues dating back to the former Coalition government such as the Robodebt scandal, former prime minister Scott Morrison’s secret ministries, the $45 billion blowout in troubled defence Hunter-class frigate program, a $2 billion Morrison government health and hospitals funding program, and the sports rorts scandal.
They have already been subject to some scrutiny through independent investigations or audits or, in the case of Robodebt, a royal commission.
Han Aulby, executive director of the Centre for Public Integrity, which campaigned for the creation of a national corruption watchdog, said the commission’s limited resources meant it may not prioritise investigating matters that had already been scrutinised by other robust investigatory processes.
“With the commission finally opening we need to respect its independence to choose what it investigates,” Aulby said.
“Things it might take into account in assessing referrals is whether the issue is current, whether any future corruption risks still exist, whether there’s a need to discourage similar conduct in the future, and if other investigations have occurred to a satisfactory extent.”
Cut through the noise of federal politics with news, views and expert analysis from Jacqueline Maley. Subscribers can sign up to our weekly Inside Politics newsletter here.