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AAP
AAP
Politics
Dominic Giannini

Attorney-general dumps integrity bill

Michaelia Cash has conceded the government's proposed anti-corruption body will not be proceeding. (AAP)

Attorney-General Michaelia Cash says the federal government will not be progressing its proposed federal anti-corruption commission "at this stage".

It clarifies confusion between the attorney-general and the prime minister the previous week, when Scott Morrison didn't rule out an anti-corruption body before the May election.

Mr Morrison told reporters "we'll see" on February 7 ahead of the parliamentary sitting week, when asked if he could secure passage of his election promise, walking back comments from Senator Cash earlier in the day.

"The reality is the Australian Greens and the Labor party do not support that model," Senator Cash told a Senate estimates hearing.

"At this point in time, we won't be proceeding with it, because (Labor) do not support it and we've always said we would require bipartisan support."

The attorney-general said if Labor decided to support its proposed model, "then we would work cooperatively to pass that as quickly as we can".

Greens senator Larissa Waters pressed officials on whether the final version of the proposed bill had changed through consultation, questioning whether any feedback had been taken on board.

The deputy secretary for integrity for the attorney-general's department said the models were the same.

"The model that is publicly available is the model that was released for consultation and that is the government's model," Sarah Chidgey told a Senate committee.

Senator Cash said the government considered the feedback and "the model we have is the right model".

The government has repeatedly shut down moves by the crossbench to debate a federal integrity commission in both the House of Representatives and the Senate.

It lost a vote in the lower house twice after Liberal MP Bridget Archer crossed the floor to force a discussion on the issue, but the debate did not proceed because there wasn't an absolute majority.

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