Opposition Leader Tony Abbott has instead drawn links between federal Labor and its NSW counterparts, saying the release of the Independent Commission Against Corruption’s findings on Wednesday represented ‘‘a black day in the history of the Labor Party’’.

After a long-running investigation, the commission found former NSW Labor ministers Ian Macdonald and Eddie Obeid and Mr Obeid’s son Moses engaged in corrupt conduct and should be referred to the Director of Public Prosecutions.

Speaking to reporters in Sydney before the findings were made public, Mr Rudd said he had been ‘‘disgusted’’ by what he had seen come out of the hearings.

One of Mr Rudd’s first acts when he was reinstalled as Prime Minister in June was to announce a federal intervention into the NSW branch of the Labor Party in an attempt to root out corruption.

On July 4, Mr Rudd gave NSW ALP general secretary Sam Dastyari 30 days to report on cleaning up the branch, and sought changes, including the expulsion of any member found to be corrupt or engaging in improper conduct.

Cleaning up the scandal-plagued NSW wing of Labor has been seen as one of the hurdles to Mr Rudd’s re-election as prime minister.

‘‘It was for no idle reason that I took a virtually unprecedented step of directing federal intervention in the NSW branch of the Labor Party. This set of reforms are anchored in one core principle: zero tolerance for corruption,’’ Mr Rudd said while touring a cancer centre at Royal Prince Alfred hospital on Wednesday morning.

"I've been disgusted by what I've seen before ICAC and anyone responsible for corrupt behaviour should face the full force of the law."

But on Wednesday afternoon, after the findings were handed down, Mr Abbott said the federal ALP could not escape its state arm.

"Today is a black day in the history of the Labor Party, because the NSW Independent Commission Against Corruption has exposed the rottenness at the heart of the NSW Labor Party and the rottenness at the heart of the Labor Party nationally, because the Federal Labor Party is very much dominated by the NSW Labor Party," he said.

Mr Abbott called on Mr Rudd to "come clean" about all the dealings his senior ministers of his government had had with Mr Macdonald and Mr Obeid.

This included Foreign Minister Bob Carr who appointed Mr Macdonald to the NSW ministry when he was premier and Immigration Minister Tony Burke who had stayed at the Obeid’s ski lodge, Mr Abbott said.

"We all know how the NSW Labor Party works. We all know that this is a giant network of intrigue and influence. We all know that it operates on the basis of special deals and special favours for special mates," he told reporters in Sydney.

"Mr Rudd needs to personally grill his ministers. He needs to personally grill Mr Dastyari - the would-be senator - and [Matt] Thistlethwaite - the would-be member for Kingsford Smith and get to bottom of their links with the Obeid-Macdonald machine."

In attacking Mr Rudd, Mr Abbott also said his plan to impose harsh criminal penalties for union officials breaking the rules would be a top-order priority for a Coalition government, calling on the Prime Minister to back the plan, even though Labor has not previously supported the legislation.

Treasurer and western Sydney MP Chris Bowen said he had not yet read the ICAC report but thought "all NSW residents and all Australians would be very disappointed as I am and the Prime Minister is".

Those found guilty, he suggested, were "abusing their office, betraying their community and their party".

On Wednesday, a member of NSW Labor’s powerful administrative committee said Mr Rudd’s intervention had failed to deliver the grassroots representation he was seeking.

The Prime Minister wanted at least 50 per cent of the powerful administrative committee to be made up of rank-and-file party members.

But Anthony D’Adam, a left-wing member of the committee, said the final package had delivered ’’more like 40 per cent’’.

With Anna Patty, AAP