No role for OPI head in Victoria's new anti-corruption body

The head of the soon-to-be abolished Office of Police Integrity will not have a role in Victoria's new anti-corruption commission

The head of the soon-to-be abolished Office of Police Integrity will not have a role in Victoria's new anti-corruption commission, with the Baillieu government declaring Michael Strong's involvement would be unacceptable.

Corruption Minister Andrew McIntosh told The Australian that allowing Mr Strong to stay on would be similar to keeping on the managing director of a company once it had been taken over.

"I think it would be just not acceptable that Michael Strong would be part of the new body," Mr McIntosh said. "And I say that with deep regret because he is a man of enormous integrity and had a very high degree of credibility as a judge."

Mr McIntosh said other staff from the OPI and Victoria Police may have future roles when the Coalition establishes the Independent Broad-Based Anti-Corruption Commission (IBAC) because their skills may be useful.

In his first interview detailing the progress of the IBAC since the Baillieu government won office last November, Mr McIntosh also said the introduction of the body would be delayed because of the current make-up of federal parliament.

The Coalition made an election promise the IBAC would be up and running by July 1, but this would not happen given the time it would take to obtain commonwealth approval for telephone intercept powers.

He said it would take at least six months to get the required federal legislation through both houses of parliament because the Greens and independents needed additional time to "properly scrutinise" it. Mr McIntosh said the government could not wind back the OPI until the new body had these telephone powers, which were vitally important to corruption investigations.

"Regrettably that timetable with telephone-tapping powers will take some time and I emphasise that not because of politics," he said. "There is a process that the independents require to get across the detail of any legislation and I think that process is going to slow the process up."

The IBAC will have the powers of a royal commission and be closely based on the NSW anti-corruption model.

It will be able to investigate police as well as ministers, members of parliament and their staff, the judiciary, the public service and local governments.

The Coalition proposed the model amid continuing criticism of the OPI, its unchecked powers and unsuccessful prosecutions of former police union boss Paul Mullett and former assistant police commissioner Noel Ashby.

Mr Strong's performance has also been questioned. In the aftermath of these prosecution failures, he famously said he regarded the investigations as a "successful operation".

Mr McIntosh said there was no doubt the public had lost confidence in the OPI, but added that the commissioner -- who has yet to be appointed -- would make decisions as to who to employ at the new agency and this may include former OPI and Victoria Police staff as they would have the "required skill set".

"We will be the first to accept the OPI has had difficulties and, in the minds of the public, is not doing the job . . . it doesn't have the capacity to do the job because I accept the proposition that corruption doesn't begin and end with Victoria Police," Mr McIntosh said. "It doesn't mean the people there haven't carried out their functions properly."

Mr McIntosh said he had numerous discussions with Mr Strong, whom he regarded "extremely highly", and believed he had inherited a body that had "political difficulties".

"Unfortunately, he's in that position where we want to take over and create a new body."