This year, Australia will have a National Anti-Corruption Commission (NACC), after legislation passed both houses of the Australian Parliament in December 2022. The NACC will investigate and prevent corruption in the commonwealth public sector.

In her appearance last October before the Joint Select Committee on National Anti-Corruption Commission Legislation, the Commissioner said she was pleased Attorney-General Mark Dreyfus had acknowledged that investigations might not always lead to prosecutions, but do inform the important work of preventing corruption.

The Committee was interested to understand the reasons for and the effects of the changes made to the ICAC Act. Commissioner Vanstone dispelled myths about the South Australian scheme and addressed media reports claiming the Commission had damaged the reputation of public officers, saying, ‘There has been much information put about by those who should or do know better’. It is for the DPP to decide if a matter proceeds to court, and only at that point can a defendant be identified. She noted that when a matter goes to court, there will be an impact on reputation. Commission investigations are no different from police investigations in that respect.

She explained the Commission conducts all investigations in private and has never conducted a public hearing in the course of any investigation.

The Commissioner explained to the Committee that the Commission can no longer directly receive reports of corruption or commence investigations on its own initiative. The amended legislation restricts the definition of corruption to ‘a very narrow band of offences.’ She told the Committee the Commission can no longer make a public statement about corruption investigations, ‘unless it's to apologise for having undertaken them or for something that happened in them.’