Home featured Credit: Nick Morrison Featured Legal Featured What SMEs need to know about the National Anti-Corruption Commission Holding Redlich September 14, 2023 The current Labor government passed legislation establishing the National Anti-Corruption Commission (NACC) in November last year. The NACC opened its doors at the beginning of July 2023, and more than 550 referrals have already been received. The NACC is headed up by former NSW Court of Appeal Judge Paul Brereton AM RFD SC, who is joined by three deputies: Dr Ben Gauntlett, former Disability Discrimination Commissioner at the Australian Human Rights Commission; Nicole Rose PSM, the former CEO of AUSTRAC; and Jaala Hinchliffe, the former Integrity Commissioner and agency head for the Australian Commission for Law Enforcement Integrity. Taking the chief executive’s position is Philip Reed, the former CEO of the NSW ICAC. At the centre of the NACC’s role is its mission to investigate serious or systemic instances of corrupt conduct by Commonwealth officials. In a statement, Commissioner Brereton expressed a desire for the Commission to attract a reputation of “being fearless but fair, independent and impartial.” Anyone can make a voluntary referral, either anonymously or otherwise, to the NACC regarding corrupt conduct, and it’s the Commissioner’s role to decide whether to investigate. They can also decide to refer the issue to a Commonwealth agency to which it relates for further action or can choose to not take any action. Although referrals can be anonymous, any subsequent statements made to the NACC as part of its