Transparency International says the ‘corrosive’ influence of money in politics is undermining Australian government integrity

This article is more than 7 months old

This article is more than 7 months old

Australia is among 21 nations where perceived corruption has worsened “significantly” over the past eight years, a new report says.

Transparency International released its latest corruption perceptions index on Thursday, ranking levels of perceived corruption in governments across the world.

Australia scored 77 from a possible 100, the same mark as last year. It means Australia has again failed to reverse a longer-term decline of eight points since 2012.

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Only 22 countries have managed to significantly improve their scores since 2012, including Greece, Estonia and Guyana.

Australia is listed as being among 21 nations that have “significantly declined” in the same time period.

The Transparency International Australia chief executive, Serena Lillywhite, said the “corrosive” influence of money in politics was continuing to undermine government integrity.

“What the corruption perceptions index clearly shows is that the murkier the political donations trail is, the more corrupt a country is perceived to be,” Lillywhite told the Guardian.

The report comes as the Coalition faces significant pressure over the ‘“sports rorts” affair, which has led to repeated calls for the resignation of the former sport minister Bridget McKenzie.

It also follows repeated integrity scandals involving both major parties in the past 12 months, including New South Wales Labor, which came under immense scrutiny for its alleged acceptance of an unlawful $100,000 donation from a Chinese billionaire.

The global report ranks Australia as the 12th least corrupt nation in the world, an improvement of one place from last year. The improvement is only because Canada and the United Kingdom declined significantly this year, falling below Australia in perceived corruption levels.

Australia is among two-thirds of countries across the world that are either stagnating or showing signs of deterioration in their anti-corruption efforts.

Lillywhite said the majority of countries that managed to improve their score in the past eight years have all strengthened rules around campaign financing, donations and grants.

“Countries that perform well on the CPI gave stronger campaign finance regulation, and broader political consultation, not just listening to well connected individuals and special interest groups,” she said.

The government has faced persistent calls to introduce a strong, well-resourced national integrity commission. Draft legislation for its proposed model – criticised as weak by many integrity experts – still has not eventuated, despite promises it would be ready by the end of last year.

“An effective federal anti-corruption agency is what 85% of Australians want,” Lillywhite said. “It’s long overdue, and needed to investigate matters such as the sports rorts scandal. Relying on the ministerial standards, without independent investigation is not good enough, will only see Australia continue to stagnate on the CPI and will further erode trust in our government.”

The Transparency International report rated New Zealand as the second least corrupt nation, just behind Denmark.

Scores are based on perceptions of corruption among experts and business executives. The aggregate score combines 13 surveys and assessments of corruption from a variety of reputable bodies.