A specialist police force attached to the ACT's corruption watchdog would investigate and stamp out wrongdoing across the territory's government and public service if a plan proposed by a former attorney-general is adopted.
Bill Stefaniak, the former Liberal opposition leader turned Belco Party candidate, said a small team of ex-police officers should be sworn in as special constables attached to the Integrity Commission.
The officers would have all the powers of search and arrest a normal police officer would have and could charge people for crimes and otherwise suggest ways for government directorates to clean up their act.
"I have thought about this problem from the time I was in the Assembly and have come up with a potential solution," Mr Stefaniak said.
"The problem [and] potential problem of corruption could be largely overcome by the government adopting for, say, an initial contract of two years, four to six ex-detective sergeants and place them either in [the Chief Minister's Directorate] or probably better still (to keep it at arm's length from government) attach them to our new Integrity Commission".
Mr Stefaniak said the Belco Party would push for the corruption police force if it won seats at the October election.
"I have always been troubled by allegations coming out of our planning department and whilst not knowing the the truth or otherwise of these claims, the deployment of two or three of these officers for a few weeks would either uncover some real problems or hopefully, if not, put the community's concerns to rest," he said.
Mr Stefaniak said the ACT had not had, until recently, many real allegations of political wrongdoing or corruption, unlike other larger jurisdictions.
"Indeed, across the border in NSW allegations of corrupt behaviour go back to the NSW Rum Corps in the early 1800s," he said.
"It is therefore with concern that behavioural standards in the government and public service may be loosening more than they should and steps need to be taken to ensure the highest standards of political behaviour and public administration are maintained in the ACT in future."
The ACT established its Integrity Commission with tripartisan support in 2019, which has since issued reports on land sales and the procurement processes for a consultant to the Canberra Institute of Technology.
But the commission has been criticised for the long period it takes to investigate allegations of corruption.
Mr Stefaniak in July announced he would run again for a seat in the Legislative Assembly because he could not interest a group of "fairly prominent" Canberrans to put their hands up.
The former Liberal said he still had politics in his blood and there was still lots to do in the territory's parliament. He unsuccessfully ran for the Belco Party in 2020.
"And I don't particularly care if I get in or not. In many ways, I would prefer one of my colleagues to get in, and I'd simply help them. But obviously, when you decide to put your hat in the ring, you have to be prepared," Mr Stefaniak told The Canberra Times.
