Motion: Attempt to Introduce: Independent Broad-Based Anti-Corruption Commission Amendment (Follow the Money) Bill 2026

MOTION

‘ATTEMPT TO INTRODUCE: INDEPENDENT BROAD-BASED ANTICORRUPTION COMMISSION AMENDMENT (FOLLOW THE MONEY) BILL 2026’.

Tuesday, 3 March 2026.

Mr NEWBURY (Brighton) (12:08):

That I introduce a Bill for an act to amend the Independent Broad-based Anti- Corruption Commission Act 2011 to expand the Independent Broad-based Anticorruption Commission’s jurisdiction and provide further for public hearings and for other purposes.

Today is a test for this Government, after this Parliament has said very loudly and very clearly that we cannot stand for the cover-up of corruption that has occurred in this State.

Members interjecting.

James NEWBURY: Only one sentence into seeking to speak to the procedural motion that would enable this Bill to occur, and the Government is calling out ‘no’. This is a test for our Parliament but more a test for this Government and whether they have any integrity at all. The Coalition, the Liberals and Nationals, have announced a package of measures because we want to clean up this State. We know and have seen the most shameful examples of corruption uncovered over recent weeks. I think it would be fair to say that every Victorian we have spoken to, and I am sure every Victorian the Government Members have spoken to, has raised their horror – there is no other word – at the corruption that has been uncovered: a minimum $15 billion of corruption.

As the Member for Laverton herself has said, this issue has been raised with Government Members. The Government Members have belled the cat; it is being raised. So, we are proposing to move a Bill today which does something meaningful and significant and will bring about change, because what this Bill will do is provide our chief anti-corruption agency with the powers it needs to chase down the crooks who are getting taxpayers money. How could any Government stand to see Victorian taxpayers’ money go to crooks and turn a blind eye – turn their back on it? Shameful. We will not, and that is why today we are moving this Bill, which has two significant powers. Firstly, it will allow the IBAC, the chief anti-corruption agency, the powers it needs to follow the
money, to chase money, and to have oversight of public expenditure in terms of third parties. In terms of third-party expenditure IBAC will have the capacity to investigate, to look into, to understand where that money has gone, because a contractual shield should not protect integrity of taxpayer’s funds. At the moment IBAC cannot look beyond that shield and understand where taxpayers’ money has gone. Sadly, it has taken a significant effort by specifically the Age to uncover where a lot of this money is going, but we know it is only the tip of the iceberg. We know, sadly, it is only the tip of the iceberg. We know that this behaviour is rampant, and it requires immediate investigation.

The second thing this Bill seeks to do is change the exceptional circumstances rule for public hearings. So, where a public hearing will be in the public interest, this new power will change the default level of when a public hearing occurs, because if it is in the public interest, it should be public, not just where it is exceptional, but where it is in the public interest. There is a balance on when public hearings occur. What this Bill seeks to do is strike that right balance. I would say to the Government: the Members of that side of the Chamber will have a chance in a moment, the Members of that side of the Chamber will have an opportunity to speak to what their level of integrity is, to whether or not they want to see corruption cleaned up in this State, and to say whether or not they believe it was okay for $15 billion of our money – taxpayers money – to be corrupted. Every Victorian is going to look on to see how Members vote, how the Premier herself votes, how the Deputy Premier votes on this Bill. This Bill is important, we must do it today, and this is the right thing to do for Victorians.