Public Sector Ethics Act 1994

This Act may be cited as the Public Sector Ethics Act 1994.

The dictionary in the schedule defines particular words used in this Act.

This Act binds all persons, including the State.

The ethics principles mentioned in subsection (2) are declared to be fundamental to good public administration.

The ethics principles are—

• integrity and impartiality

• promoting the public good

• commitment to the system of government

• accountability and transparency.

In recognition of the ethics principles, ethics values are to apply to public service agencies, public sector entities and public officials.

The values mentioned in division 2 are the ethics values for public service agencies, public sector entities and public officials.

The ethics values are intended to provide the basis for codes of conduct for public service agencies, public sector entities and public officials and are not of themselves legally enforceable.

In recognition that public office involves a public trust, public service agencies, public sector entities and public officials seek to promote public confidence in the integrity of the public sector and—

are committed to the highest ethical standards; and

accept and value their duty to provide advice which is objective, independent, apolitical and impartial; and

show respect towards all persons, including employees, clients and the general public; and

acknowledge the primacy of the public interest and undertake that any conflict of interest issue will be resolved or appropriately managed in favour of the public interest; and

are committed to honest, fair and respectful engagement with the community.

In recognition that the public sector is the mechanism through which the elected representatives deliver programs and services for the benefit of the people of Queensland, public service agencies, public sector entities and public officials—

accept and value their duty to be responsive to both the requirements of government and to the public interest; and

accept and value their duty to engage the community in developing and effecting official public sector priorities, policies and decisions; and

accept and value their duty to manage public resources effectively, efficiently and economically; and

value and seek to achieve excellence in service delivery; and

value and seek to achieve enhanced integration of services to better service clients.

In recognition that the public sector has a duty to uphold the system of government and the laws of the State, Commonwealth and local government, public service agencies, public sector entities and public officials—

accept and value their duty to uphold the system of government and the laws of the State, the Commonwealth and local government; and

are committed to effecting official public sector priorities, policies and decisions professionally and impartially; and

accept and value their duty to operate within the framework of Ministerial responsibility to government, the Parliament and the community.

Subsection (1) does not limit the responsibility of a public service agency, public sector entity or public official to act independently of government if the independence of the agency, entity or official is required by legislation or government policy, or is a customary feature of the work of the agency, entity or official.

In recognition that public trust in public office requires high standards of public administration, public service agencies, public sector entities and public officials—

are committed to exercising proper diligence, care and attention; and

are committed to using public resources in an effective and accountable way; and

are committed to managing information as openly as practicable within the legal framework; and

value and seek to achieve high standards of public administration; and

value and seek to innovate and continuously improve performance; and

value and seek to operate within a framework of mutual obligation and shared responsibility between public service agencies, public sector entities and public officials.

In recognition of the ethics principles and values for public service agencies, public sector entities and public officials, codes of conduct are to apply to those agencies, entities and officials in performing their official functions.

The purpose of a code is to provide standards of conduct for public service agencies, public sector entities and public officials consistent with the ethics principles and values.

The code of conduct for public service agencies—

must relate to all public service agencies; and

applies to all public officials of a public service agency; and

may apply to other persons who are not public officials of a public service agency who have a contract or other agreement with the public service agency.Examples for paragraph (c)—

• contractors with the agency and their employees

• volunteers with the agency

• students on work experience with the agency

The code may make different provision, consistent with the ethics values, for different types of—

public officials; or

persons mentioned in subsection (1)(c).

The code of conduct for public service agencies may contain anything the commissioner considers necessary or useful for achieving the purpose of a code of conduct.

In particular, the code may provide conduct obligations public officials must comply with.

The code also may contain—

information explaining the purpose of—

the ethics principles and values generally or a particular ethics principle or value; or

standards of conduct generally or a particular standard of conduct; and

information explaining the object intended to be achieved by the application of—

the ethics principles and values generally or a particular ethics principle or value; or

standards of conduct generally or a particular standard of conduct; and

guidelines about the application of an ethics principle, value or standard of conduct; and

examples of the operation of an ethics principle, value or standard of conduct; and

explanatory notes about an ethics principle, value or standard of conduct; and

references to Acts applying to public officials in performing their official functions.