‘A distraction’: Anti-corruption commissioner Paul Brereton defiant as exit looms

The outgoing commissioner of Australia’s anti-corruption watchdog was presented with a draft inquiry into allegations of conflict of interest more than two months before he sensationally resigned, a Senate hearing was told.

Paul Brereton resigned as commissioner of the National Anti-Corruption Commission on Monday.

The former Major General told an estimates hearing on Tuesday that his decision to resign was due to ongoing interest in his ties to the Australian Defense Force, including his ongoing relationship with the Inspector General of the Australian Defense Force (IGADF) and the investigation into the conduct of special forces officers in Afghanistan.

“Every time the chief executive comes here he has to answer questions about me,” he said.

“The media’s attention is focused on me and my interests… which has become distracting.

“And that’s basically why I decided it was in the best interest of the organization to eliminate distractions.”

Asked about a report by NACC Inspector Gail Furness into the commission’s decision not to investigate guidance from the Robodebt royal commission, which found Mr Brereton had failed to properly deal with a declared conflict of interest, the outgoing commissioner told me this was “the definition of officer misconduct”.

“Given the very broad definition that any error of fact or any error of law amounts to misconduct by the officer,” he added.

“We now have a commission where staff are afraid to make any mistakes, whether factual or legal, because they are afraid of being visited by officers finding misconduct.”

He continued: “If I had never been involved in the Robodebt issue from the very beginning, we would have established a very similar, if not identical, management structure.”

Mr Brereton said in a statement that he would “continue to resist any suggestion of impropriety”.

He told the hearing that he had been presented with a draft report into the investigation of Ms Furness in March (which was usual practice) but that it would not be appropriate to infer that it had led to any adverse findings.

“It would be entirely inappropriate to speculate on the contents of any draft report without pending procedural fairness,” he said.

Mr Brereton told the hearing that he “recognised from the outset” that there might be conflicts that needed to be managed, given his links to the defence.

“And they were sidelined and led by me on issues in which people I knew through defense had an interest,” he said.

In a defiant tone, he said he had “disclosed to all legal officials” his ongoing ties to the ADF.

“Beyond that, he (CEO Philip Reed) did not need to know exactly what I did for the ADF for less than 30 hours during the three years he spent working with IGDAF,” he said.

Mr Brereton continued: “Nor do they need to know whether I went to church on Sunday, or if so which church, or whether I played cricket or rugby on Saturday and what brand of rugby that might be.”

Mr Brereton said he had to spend “an inordinate amount of time” defending himself.

“More importantly, the commission has had to spend a large portion of its time defending me, which prevents both of us from doing our jobs, regardless of the nature of the allegations,” he said.

Mr Brereton has faced intense scrutiny from Greens Senator and Canberra Senator David Pocock.

“It seems to me, in your last appearance, that you have taken absolutely no ownership of any of the stumbles and incidents that have occurred in the founding of the NACC, and I find that very disappointing for a leader of your stature,” Senator Pocock said.

“Well, you’re entitled to your opinion,” Mr. Brereton replied.

He has previously denied receiving any indication from the government that confidence in him had been lost.

“I accept that I have contributed to this outcome in some way, but I do not accept that my standards have fallen below an appropriate standard in any way,” he said.

Previously, Mr Brereton had refused to immediately provide a copy of his resignation letter to the Governor-General, stating that he wanted to “check whether it contained personal information that should not have been disclosed”.

Controversial tenure

Attorney General Michelle Rowland thanked Mr. Brereton for his service in a statement on Monday.

“Commissioner Brereton made an invaluable contribution to the establishment of the NACC as its first commissioner,” he said.

A merit-based process will begin to appoint a new commissioner of the NACC.

Mr Brereton’s tenure as head of Australia’s corruption watchdog was marked by controversy, including an investigation by NACC investigator Gail Furness.

The former Major General announced in September 2025 that he would step away from any defense-related guidance to the NACC “to prevent this from becoming a distraction.”

“I have managed potential conflicts regarding defense referrals,” Mr. Brereton told a senate estimates hearing earlier this year.

Mr Brereton has also faced scrutiny over his ongoing role as Inspector General of the Australian Defense Force (IGADF) and its investigation into the conduct of special forces officers in Afghanistan.

He told the same hearing that his relationship with the IGADF was approximately 24 hours a day for 29 months, was unpaid and was mostly outside working hours.

The hearing was told that in less than six months he had received nearly 90 complaints about Mr Brereton alleging conflicts of interest, including the provision of legal assistance.

On Tuesday, Mr Brereton blamed 40 of the complaints on “the two-day period following the social media campaign”.