Sandra McLellan (Cork East, Sinn Fein)
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Question 38: To ask the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform the measures he has taken or will take, within the context of his public sector reform agenda, to extend the definition of improbity within senior levels of the public sector beyond that of financial transactions. [28258/12]

Brendan Howlin (Wexford, Labour)
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A detailed framework is already in place relating to the standards of professional conduct and behaviour applying to public officials in addition to those in place to ensure the probity of financial transactions. This framework is established under ethics legislation and covers under various statutory Codes of Conduct key aspects of the performance of the official duties of, for example, civil service and local government employees in relation to standards of performance, behaviour at work and standards of integrity in order to ensure that the highest standards of probity are maintained. In key sectors of the wider public service such as the Health Service Executive and An Garda Síochána Codes of Conduct have been put in place under sectoral legislation.

As far as other non-commercial State bodies are concerned, under the Code of Practice for the Governance of State Bodies which State bodies are required to adopt, Codes of Business Conduct must be put in place for employees relating to such objectives as:-

establishment of an agreed set of ethical principles;

promotion and maintenance of confidence and trust; and

prevention of development or acceptance of unethical practices

The final Report of the Tribunal into Certain Planning Matters and Payments while recognising that there is a broad framework of ethics legislation in place in Ireland made a number of significant recommendations to reinforce and strengthen ethical requirements for public officials in particular those governing the management of actual and perceived conflicts of interest. As part of a broad programme of political reform, my Department is currently examining options for the implementation of these requirements including the case for a root and branch reworking of the ethics framework to best to give effect to the findings of the Mahon Tribunal.