ICAC COMMISSIONER’S RESIGNATION AN INDICTMENT OF THE BAIRD GOVERNMENT

The Commissioner of the Independent Commission Against Corruption, Megan Latham, has announced that she will resign from her position on 30 November.

Jamie Parker, MP for Balmain and Greens anti-corruption spokesperson, said:

“This announcement should surprise no one. This is simply the logical conclusion of the Government's long-running campaign to destabilise and undermine the state's top corruption fighting body.

The Baird government has succeeded in their aim of fundamentally changing the ICAC and undermining its capacity to investigate corruption.

We've already seen the government renege on its commitments to fully fund the ICAC and strip it of close to $2 million, forcing the Commission to close one of its four investigation teams.

Megan Latham's resignation demonstrates just how far this political interference into the workings of the ICAC has gone.

The writing was on the wall when both Labor and the Liberals agreed to radical changes to the structure of the ICAC. The new three-Commissioner structure means that the Government is now free to stack ICAC with its mates and ensure it is less proactive in the pursuit of corrupt politicians.

The constant political interference from the Liberal government has now fatally and deliberately weakened the very body that keeps politicians honest.

This has been a calculated campaign that began by removing vital funding from the Commission and has now culminated in the removal of the Commissioner herself.

This is nothing short of political payback cheered on by corrupt politicians and their fellow travellers.”