Past instances of alleged bullying, harassment and misconduct by Victorian MPs could be buried under Labor's plan for a parliamentary integrity commission.
Premier Jacinta Allan on Tuesday announced her government will introduce legislation to create the commission after Labor was embroiled in multiple scandals.
Under the proposed model, three commissioners would probe inappropriate behaviour and misconduct complaints against MPs, including ministers and parliamentary secretaries, across workplace settings.
The bill follows through on seven recommendations from the Independent and Broad-Based Commission and Victorian Ombudsman’s Operation Watts report into Labor branch-stacking and misuse of taxpayer funds.
Other proposed changes include establishing an ethics committee, improving public interest disclosures and legislating an already existing parliamentary integrity advisor.
Ms Allan wants the reforms to take effect by the middle of next year, in line with the timeline set out by the integrity agencies.
"We've got to move our integrity framework in this place to modern standards, bring it into the 21st century," she told reporters at parliament.
Under the model, commissioners would make findings and recommend or impose sanctions in reports to be tabled in parliament.
However, the Allan government does not plan to give the commission retrospective powers, meaning it won't be able to investigate complaints about past incidents.
Operation Watts found former factional powerbroker Adem Somyurek and ally Marlene Kairouz breached elements of the ministerial and MP codes of conduct.
But the watchdogs opted not to refer either for potential criminal prosecution, citing the high threshold for proving corruption in court based on current laws.
Victorian MP Will Fowles resigned from the parliamentary Labor Party in August after he was accused of a serious assault.
Lower house speaker Maree Edwards and upper house president Shaun Leane were unable to investigate the alleged incident as it did not take place in the parliamentary precinct.
Police are investigating the allegation, which Mr Fowles denies.
An 82-year-old grandmother in June accused Liberal MP James Newbury of abusing her on Victorian election day last year, a claim he denies.
That allegation similarly would not be able to be investigated by the commission under the current plan, although Labor has vowed to consult on its final model.
The commission would also be powerless to look at complaints about lower-level parliamentary staff.
Anyone would be able to make anonymous complaints but they could not extend to MPs opinions or their private lives.
Attorney-General Jaclyn Symes acknowledged there would be grey areas where MPs were acting in a private and work context simultaneously.
“We want to ensure that there are no barriers for anybody to make a complaint, but we do not want complaints going into the personal lives of MPs," she said.
Commissioners could not be recent MPs or political party members, with the governor to sign off government-recommended appointees approved by the Integrity and Oversight Committee.
Shadow Attorney-General Michael O’Brien said the opposition would consider the government's proposed model but the commission should have retrospective powers.
"If this government is serious about bipartisanship, if it's serious about tackling corruption and cleaning up politics in Victoria, it needs to be genuinely bipartisan," he said.
Victorian Greens integrity spokesman Tim Read said the reforms were better late than never, but should be sped up and go further.
