Melissa Parke (Fremantle, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

On behalf of the Parliamentary Joint Committee on the Australian Commission for Law Enforcement Integrity, I present the committee’s report entitled Examination of the annual report of the Integrity Commissioner 2007-08, together with evidence received by the committee.

Ordered that the report be made a parliamentary paper.

I am pleased to present the report by the Parliamentary Joint Committee on the Australian Commission for Law Enforcement Integrity, or ACLEI as it is known, on the annual report of the Integrity Commissioner 2007-08. This is core business for the committee, whose task is to provide a supervisory link between the parliament and the function of ACLEI in its role as the oversight body for Commonwealth law enforcement agencies, namely the Australian Federal Police and the Australian Crime Commission, on issues of corruption.

As the committee chair, it is my honour to present the committee’s second report of this kind and to note that it marks another milestone in ACLEI’s development, because this annual report is the first by the commissioner to cover a full financial year. At the outset, let me confirm that in the committee’s view this annual report complies with all required reporting obligations. Let me also say that this annual report is an impressive record of ACLEI’s smooth transition to corporate autonomy and of the strengthening of its internal governance arrangements. As part of this process during 2007-08, ACLEI established an internal audit committee, comprising both internal and external members who will advise the commissioner on internal control systems, risk management, legislative and regulatory compliance, and the financial reporting and control of public money and assets. It is of course critical that leading anticorruption bodies like ACLEI set the standard when it comes to systemic and structural integrity. The creation of this internal audit committee is proof of ACLEI’s commitment to that high standard.

This and other achievements have provided a solid basis for ACLEI as it continues to build upon and refine its assessment and investigation expertise and as it continues to implement its broadbased anticorruption mandate. In this way it is notable that ACLEI is more than a corruption investigation body. For example, during the reporting period ACLEI commenced reviews of the AFP’s and the ACC’s anticorruption plans, both to better understand the range of corruption risks that exist within those agencies and to examine how those risks are currently being managed. From my point of view as committee chair, and with my past professional interest in ethics and integrity training, it was very pleasing to hear from the commissioner that ACLEI’s education and prevention work is underway, through the provision of information and educational resources to staff within the oversighted agencies in the form of appropriate presentations, training programs and publications. This proactive approach has resulted in several instances where ACLEI has received notification of matters earlier in the investigation process than it otherwise would have.

The committee notes that ACLEI has reported a noticeably increased workload since its inception in 2006, and the committee heard from the Integrity Commissioner that this trend is expected to continue through the 2008-09 work year. There are several reasons for this marked increase and these include the natural evolution and expansion of ACLEI into its role; the effective promotion within the oversighted agencies of ACLEI’s purpose and its operational powers; and the rising complexity of matters notified and referred to ACLEI for consideration. I note with satisfaction that the funding increase provided in last year’s budget has clearly allowed ACLEI to adjust its organisational structure and to better accommodate its increasing workload. This new structure has now been independently assessed and endorsed. However, the committee has also recognised, both in its inquiry into state based law enforcement integrity models and in its examination of the commissioner’s annual report, that ACLEI’s resources will need to be further increased if the agency is to be able to continue to respond effectively to the increased number of corruption matters being referred and notified to the Integrity Commissioner and in order for ACLEI to continue developing its pre-emptive education and risk review capacity. Accordingly, the committee has made a recommendation that the government undertake a review of ACLEI’s funding levels as a matter of priority.

As the chair of the ACLEI committee, I commend the commissioner and his staff for all their work. I thank my fellow committee members for their interest and participation in the business of this committee and, on their behalf, I also thank the committee secretariat’s members for their valued assistance in our work.