Probity issues with the ACT government's procurement processes are likely to be endemic but the cost to fully investigate them would be trivial compared to the money spent on the contracts, the territory's integrity commissioner has said.
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The ACT Integrity Commission may also need to ask for more funding to handle investigations if it identifies a series of credible issues that require investigation from a public appeal.
Integrity commissioner Michael Adams QC said it would be unlikely issues identified with a procurement process by the Auditor-General were a one-off incident.
Mr Adams said the commission's call for people in the building industry to come forward and report any improper handling of government tenders was prompted by an Auditor-General's report, which found significant failures in the process to award a $17.5 million contract for primary school upgrade.
Mr Adams told a Legislative Assembly inquiry on Wednesday the commission was focused on systematic issues rather than isolated conduct.
"Particular instances where people get criticised for this or that are all very well, but you want to do is to make a change to a system that led to them, and for that you need a wider range of data," Mr Adams said.
Mr Adams said if a public appeal for information resulted in a series of significant investigations, the commission would either face significant delays in finalising its work or it would need to ask the Legislative Assembly for additional resources.
"When we talk about my costs of investigation, they are trivial when you're comparing with the cost of some of these tenders," he said.
The commission would weigh up the cost of investigations, how long ago the alleged corrupt conduct took place and the public interest in conducting an investigation when deciding which matters to prioritise, Mr Adams said.
The Integrity Commission on Tuesday afternoon called for people in the construction industry to come forward to report suspicious procurement conduct, its first specific public information appeal.
The commission also revealed it was considering an investigation into the procurement process for the Campbell Primary School modernisation project, after the Auditor-General found significant shortcomings with the way its tender was handled.
Mr Adams on Wednesday told an inquiry into the commission's annual report the commission would consider roughly 13,000 documents from the Auditor-General in relation to the Campbell Primary School tender to decide whether an investigation was warranted.
"When we've looked at that material, we will decide whether there is a reasonable suspicion of corrupt conduct. If there is a reasonable suspicion of corrupt conduct, we will then consider whether we should use our coercive powers. Almost certainly the answer is yes," he said.
Mr Adams said the public request for information could uncover more issues the commission would need to consider, but the commission could not wait until it had every possible piece of evidence before considering matters.
"Investigations are always ongoing. You can't wait until you've got everything in your bag," he said.
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Mr Adams also revealed the commission had considered complaints about land sales at Throsby and Whitlam, and he advised the government of the results of the inquiries into those matters.
"Sale of land is an issue that comes up more than once in complaints. I might say we have not yet had a complaint that has moved to the investigation stage once we've examined its basis, but in this jurisdiction they are a fraught matter," he said.
The commission released its first report earlier this month, finding there was no reasonable suspicion of corrupt conduct by either Chief Minister Andrew Barr or officials over the controversial 2015 purchase of land adjacent to Glebe Park.
The purchase of the block had drawn attention after it was revealed the government bought it for four times the amount of one valuation.
Mr Adams on Tuesday said there was at least one, and potentially a second, matter being considered by the commission that he thought could benefit from a public hearing.
The commission has not held any public hearings as part of corruption inquiries since it was established in 2019. Private hearings are expected to resume in March after being delayed due to COVID-19.
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