THE GREENS NSW

The Greens NSW, Suite D, Level 1, 275 Broadway, Glebe NSW 2037.

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Greens deliver anti-corruption package for NSW Politics15TH March, 2015  The NSW Greens are releasing a comprehensive five point anti-corruption package for NSW. Self-interest amongst Labor and Coalition MPs has meant the institutional change required to corruption-proof NSW has never happened. The Greens know this is a package of reforms that can change NSW politics for the better. The Greens Five point anti-corruption package will: 

1.    Legislate for clear statutory offences for bribery, misconduct and corruption of and by public officials, with 15 year maximum sentences where the offences involve Members of Parliament or senior bureaucrats2.    Provide for the potential seizure of unexplained wealth accumulated by members of Parliament and/or their close family members, during and in the two years following their parliamentary service3.    Impose a five year cooling off period before Ministers, Parliamentary Secretaries and senior bureaucrats can work for companies that operate in the industries they had previously regulated.4.   Deliver lobbying transparency; all lobbying of ministers, parliamentary secretaries, ministerial staff and public servants should be minuted and those minutes made publicly available online.5.    Impose a ban on political donations from for-profit organisations combined with the immediate online disclosure of all other donations.

 Why these reforms are essential: 

For the past two decades Liberal and Labor governments have passed hundreds of laws making clear criminal penalties for a range of criminal conduct from drink driving to public violence. However the one area of the law they have failed to address is corruption by politicians or senior bureaucrats. Bizarrely this area of the law is primarily governed by old common law offences that date back to the 13 th   and 17 th   centuries .

  The existing anti-corruption laws are complex and unworkable with no set maximum

penalties. As a result they are rarely used and political corruption often goes unpunished in NSW. The Greens are proposing clear and unambiguous statutory offences for bribery, misconduct and corruption of, and by, public officials to ensure these criminals are caught and brought to account. The laws should be based on the successful UK Bribery Act 2010. To address the seriousness of the matter a 15 year maximum sentences should apply where the offence involves a Member of Parliament or senior bureaucrat.

  Members of Parliament are required to pro-actively disclose their assets and business

interests under the Constitution (Disclosures by Members) Regulation 1983. However if members breach this obligation they are not subject to any criminal penalty. Even where unexplained wealth is disclosed by MPs on the register there is no provision

THE GREENS NSW

The Greens NSW, Suite D, Level 1, 275 Broadway, Glebe NSW 2037.

to allow for the recovery of that unexplained wealth.

  Recent NSW politics has shown the need for asset recovery legislation directed at the

unexplained wealth of MPs and their close family members. It should be modelled on the Criminal Assets Recovery Act 1990 to allow for the recovery of unexplained wealth accrued by an MP, or their close family, during or in the two years after, their term in office.

  In NSW, as in politics across Australia, we continue to see a revolving door that sees

MPs retire to become senior executives or board members in the industries they used to regulate. We also see senior bureaucrats and executives move from industry to regulator and back again. The end result is an absence of professional distance - and opportunities for self-advancement - at the expense of the public interest. To end this the Greens are proposing a five year cooling off period before Ministers, Parliamentary Secretaries and senior bureaucrats can work for companies that operate in the industries they had previously regulated. This will substantially extend and strengthen the existing 18 month prohibition on former Ministers and Parliamentary secretaries lobbying in relation to an official matter that was dealt with by them in their capacity as a Minister or Parliamentary Secretary.

People have a right to know who is meeting with government Ministers and senior political staff and what was discussed. For that to happen, we need lobbying transparency: All lobbying of Ministers, Parliamentary Secretaries, ministerial staff and public servants should be minuted and those minutes made publicly available online within seven days of the meeting occurring. This is a significant and essential extension of the existing diary disclosure log that contains no useful details of the matters discussed with senior government officials.

Where money and politics mix, opportunities for corruption are created. For more than two decades the Greens NSW have refused to accept corporate donations. For-profit corporations have no interest in politics other than to obtain financial gain. To further corruption proof NSW, the Greens support a comprehensive ban, at both State and Federal levels, on political donations from for-profit organisations. In combination with this reform there must be full and public transparency of all other donations. This can most readily be delivered through an online disclosure regime operated by the NSW Electoral Commission.

Greens MP Jamie Parker, who has been leading the charge against corruption in the NSW Parliament, said: "There is a deafening silence coming from both Labor and the Liberals around the scourge of corruption in this election campaign. That’s no accident. Neither of the old parties have been willing to do anything more than tinker around the edges when it comes to stamping out corruption.”

“Corruption is not a victimless crime. It has already cost communities across NSW millions of dollars in lost opportunities, the loss of amenity, good public planning, and perhaps more critically, it has cost many their faith in democracy itself.”

THE GREENS NSW

The Greens NSW, Suite D, Level 1, 275 Broadway, Glebe NSW 2037.

“Cleaning up politics is imperative if we are to restore integrity to the political process, and ensure planning is based on the interests of the community – not big developers and vested interests.”

“The policies being put forward by the Greens mark a line in the sand. With them we can stamp out corruption, otherwise its business as usual as corrupt practices crank up, and dodgy players get back in the driver’s seat.”

“We need to clean up this State and this must start with clear and unambiguous laws that send corrupt politicians to jail for a very long time.”

For further information contact:Jamie Parker: 0418428 089 or Lesa de Leau: 0413 581 606