Business Senator Says Integrity Commission Should Reverse Decision in Filing

Mark Lizarraga

The Integrity Commission is presently without a chairman as now-Supreme Court Justice Marilyn Williams resigned at the start of January. On Friday we heard from Deputy Prime Minister Patrick Faber about the government’s difficulties in finding a replacement due to persons being unwilling to expose themselves to scrutiny. But Senator Mark Lizarraga told us that’s par for the course for the current administration. The Integrity Commission only pore over records from 2016 rather than, under the law, the full time a person in public life has held their post.

Mark Lizarraga, Senator for the Business Community

“We keep saying that we have these institutions to safeguard and to provide us with accountability. But in effect the law is very clear when it comes to the Integrity Commission and its reports and its filings. The law states that you should file for that year before you got into public office; you should file right through every year you are in public office; and you should file for the year after you leave the public office. This is so persons can know if you have in fact accumulated wealth during your term in office and why and can it be justified. It’s very disappointing to see that the [Integrity Commission] chose to commence looking from 2016 forward, when we have politicians who have been serving for many, many years before that. So it is a major concern.”