ICAC regional corruption prevention program to visit Central West

Monday 3 May 2010

The Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC) will visit the Central West next week as part of a Commission program that takes anti-corruption initiatives and training to regions across NSW.

The visit will include workshops and briefing sessions for state and local government agencies to raise awareness about corruption risks, and ways to manage and prevent its occurrence. The Commission is also planning to release the results of its most recent research project involving profiling of the NSW public sector at a community leaders' breakfast in Orange on Tuesday, 11 May.

The ICAC Commissioner, the Hon David Ipp AO QC, said the Commission's outreach program provided local agencies across the state with the opportunity to experience hands-on corruption prevention workshops with the Commission's highly-skilled staff.

"The ICAC workshops will include training on managing protected disclosures, corruption prevention for managers and a fact-finder workshop which will help agencies to conduct their own internal investigations.

 "The visit will also include the NSW Deputy Ombudsman, Chris Wheeler, and NSW Police Integrity Commissioner John Pritchard who will address the community leaders' breakfast and speak about the functions of their respective agencies," Commissioner Ipp said.

State Government agencies attending the outreach activities include Aboriginal Affairs NSW, the Department of Education and Training, TAFE NSW, the Roads and Traffic Authority, NSW Police Force, Orange Local Aboriginal Land Council, Country Energy, NSW Maritime, Land and Property Management Authority, Industry and Investment NSW, Greater Southern Area Health Service, the Department of Ageing, Disability and Home Care, and the Western Catchment Authority. Councils participating will include Orange City, Blayney Shire, Forbes Shire, Oberon, Parkes Shire, Weddin Shire and Mid-Western Regional.

The ICAC's Deputy Commissioner, Ms Theresa Hamilton, will host the community leaders' breakfast, which will be attended by approximately 50 people including representatives from local councils, state government agencies, local business people and interest groups.

The ICAC outreach program has proved highly successful since its inception in 2001. Previous visits have included to the Far South Coast, the Illawarra, New England, the Hunter, the Far West, the South East, the Central Coast, and the North Coast.