Allegations about the personal conduct of Attorney-General Christian Porter have called into question his development of a federal integrity commission, which Indi MP Helen Haines says cannot be delayed any longer.
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The ABC on Monday revealed Mr Porter had been seen out with young women who worked for the government, despite being married.
Asked if Mr Porter was still the right person to create a commission, Dr Haines said he had done little so far, as there was still six months of consultation to go, which is why she introduced her own plans a week earlier.
Her proposed commission had more powers than the government's and included the ability to made politicians face public hearings.
"We need to have faith in that people in power will not exploit that position," she said.
"When this trust is lost, the work of government, often led by ministers, can be fundamentally compromised.
"At the end of the day I'm not interested in the private lives and private decisions of my colleagues, I'm focused on the substance of the proposal.
"It doesn't matter to me which member of government leads the proposal for an integrity commission ... Every time the behaviour of government ministers sucks up the Parliament's attention, it's these things - the things that impact people's lives - that suffer."
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Dr Haines said she would not wait for the dust to settle before continuing to push the government on the issue.
"My bill is focused on what MPs do when they become elected officials.
"Importantly, it establishes parliamentary standards for federal MPs which requires them to act with respect and due regard for the rights and responsibilities of all persons, including parliamentary staff who have a right to feel safe in the workplace and who should be treated with fairness, dignity, and respect at all times, free from harassment of any kind.
"Every other significant public profession in this country, from judges to journalists, barristers to doctors, have established codes of conduct - federal politics should be no different."
