ICAC turmoil: ‘Kangaroo court ruining lives’: Liberal Jason Falinski wants to end it

Liberal MP Jason Falinski has called for the NSW anti-corruption commission to be abolished, declaring it a ‘kangaroo court’ that was ruining innocent people’s lives.

Liberal MP Jason Falinski. Picture: AAP

Federal Liberal MP Jason Falinski has called for the NSW anti-corruption commission to be abolished, declaring it a “kangaroo court” that was ruining innocent people’s lives.

The Mackellar MP, who is in the same Liberal Party faction as Gladys Berejiklian, said there were fundamental flaws in the functioning of the Independent Commission Against Corruption.

“ICAC is in need of such fundamental reform that it would be easier to abolish it and start again,” Mr Falinski said.

“It is a miscarriage of justice at the moment.

“The most important oversight body in any government is actually the Auditor-General.

“That is the organisation that has the capacity to go in and see if decisions actually add up or not.”

Mr Falinski rejected calls from Labor for a federal ICAC-style body but said he could live with the national integrity commission model proposed by Attorney-General Christian Porter.

That body could investigate allegations of corruption but would not hold public hearings.

“Every time Labor and the crossbenchers say we need a federal ICAC, I always stand up and say, ‘What about all the lives the NSW ICAC has destroyed for no good reason?’,” he said, pointing to former crown prosecutor Margaret Cunneen and former Liberal minister Mike Gallacher.

Both went through the ICAC process but were eventually cleared of wrongdoing.