Libs to abolish police watchdog

A Coalition state government would abolish the Office of Police Integrity and replace it with a "one-stop shop" anti-corruption commission.

A Coalition state government would abolish the Office of Police Integrity and replace it with a "one-stop shop" anti-corruption commission.

It would investigate crooked cops, politicians and public servants.

As the Victorian state election campaign enters its final days amid a tightening race, Opposition Leader Ted Baillieu will today announce his alternative to the Brumby government's proposed anti-corruption reforms, which the Coalition says are "incoherent, complex and confusing".

The Coalition's proposed Independent Broad-based Anti-corruption Commission would have the powers of a royal commission and be closely based on the NSW model.

But the jurisdiction of the IBAC would go one step further than its interstate counterpart, with powers to investigate police as well as ministers, members of parliament and their staff, the judiciary, the public service and local governments.

Under the proposal, the IBAC would be headed by a single commissioner who would have to be a former judge and be appointed by the Victorian Governor for a single five-year term. The body would be overseen by a parliamentary joint committee and a special inspector to ensure appropriate accountability.

The biggest change in the $170 million model is the abolition of the OPI, which Mr Baillieu says "has run its race" and lost the confidence of Victorians.

The police watchdog - which will also be subject to more oversight under the Brumby government's reforms - has been criticised after its unsuccessful prosecutions of former police union boss Paul Mullett and former assistant police commissioner Noel Ashby.

The OPI is also under pressure to explain its conduct in investigating leaks from an anti-terror operation last year.

A report by the OPI's federal counterpart, the Australian Commission for Law Enforcement Integrity, last week revealed its concern at having to report jointly with the OPI.

Mr Baillieu and opposition spokesman for integrity of government Andrew McIntosh say Victoria "now stands accused of being the most-secretive and least-transparent government in the country", and Labor had ignored calls for an anti-corruption body for too long.

They say when the Brumby government belatedly acknowledged gaps in its anti-corruption regime and commissioned senior public servant Elizabeth Proust to review the system, the "Clayton's model" it proposed as a replacement was seriously flawed.

"The Coalition believes that there are many issues concerning possible corruption in Victoria that need investigation and there has been too little accountability under the Bracks/Brumby government," says the Coalition's policy document, seen by The Australian.

"The Labor government's proposed model is confused, complex and incoherent."

The Coalition document states that the reputation of the OPI has been seriously damaged by "failed prosecutions, claims of ethical breaches and lack of separation from Victoria Police."

"Its functions and resources will be subsumed into IBAC when the latter begins it operations."

The commission will also be able to investigate unsworn members of the police force and the private sector "when the corruption is directed to facilitating or protecting the interests" of corporations.