The Cole Inquiry, formally the Inquiry into certain Australian companies in relation to the UN Oil-For-Food Programme, was a Royal Commission established by the Australian government pursuant to the to investigate "whether decisions, actions, conduct or payments by Australian companies mentioned in the Volcker Inquiry into the United Nations Oil-for-Food Programme breached any Federal, State or Territory law." The inquiry commenced on 10 November 2005 and was overseen by a sole Royal Commissioner, Justice Terence Cole . Justice Cole handed the commission's five volume report to the Governor-General on 24 November 2006; and the report was tabled in parliament on 27 November 2006. Background The Volcker Inquiry was set up to investigate the systematic corruption of the Oil-for-Food Programme (or Program) by the Arab nationalist and Arab socialist government of the fifth President of Iraq, Saddam Hussein. The Volcker Inquiry The United Nations Independent Inquiry Committee was formed to investigate allegations of corruption and fraud in the UN Oil-for-Food Programme. Paul Volcker's report, released in October 2005, found that AWB was the biggest single source of kickbacks made to the Iraqi government. In exchange for trouble-free disembarkation of wheat purchased under the Oil for food program, AWB paid 'trucking charges' totaling A$300 million to Alia, a Jordanian trucking company. Volcker found that Alia kept a small percentage of the 'charges', and passed the remainder to the government of Saddam Hussein. An accompanying statement released with the report by the Secretary-General of the United Nations, Kofi Annan requested that "national authorities take steps to prevent the recurrence of such practices in the future and that they take action, where appropriate, against companies falling within their jurisdiction". Establishment of the Cole Inquiry In response to Volcker's findings, the Australian Government established a Royal Commission to further investigate the claims raised by the UN report. By Letters Patent issued on 10 November 2005 the commission was asked to inquire into and report on: whether any decision, action, conduct, payment or writing of any of the three Australian companies mentioned in the Final Report ("Manipulation of the Oil-for-Food Programme by the Iraqi Regime") of the Independent Inquiry Committee into the United Nations Oil-for-Food Programme, or any person associated with one of those companies, might have constituted a breach of any law of the Commonwealth, a State or Territory; and if so, whether the question of criminal or other legal proceedings should be referred to