teal independent takes steps to outlaw corruption

The teal independents were elected on a platform that called out the Coalition government’s three principal failures: climate denialism, sexism and corruption. To that extent, their strategies coincided with that of Anthony Albanese. It is the last issue — corruption, and its flipside, integrity — that seems to be picking up the most political steam.

Following the successful legislation of a federal anti-corruption commission, with amendments pushed by the independents, the notion of restoring integrity to politics is very much in vogue. The government’s announcement that it will abolish the corrupted Administrative Appeals Tribunal (AAT) altogether was met only with applause.

Sophie Scamps, independent member for Mackellar, will shortly be upping the ante further, with a move about which the Labor government may not feel as sanguine. She is working up a private member’s bill with the clunky but accurate title “Ending Jobs for Mates”. It means to do exactly as it says: bring an end to the longstanding practice, turbocharged by the Coalition government, of giving lucrative government posts as political favours to party hacks and donors.