Integrity is more than just measuring corruption – the passing of Jeremy Pope

31 August 2012 

Jeremy Pope, who died this week, was a major influence in institutionalising the importance of organisational integrity.  Although Transparency International is now recognised as one of the paramount NGOs engaged in promoting open and accountable government, Jeremy’s role in its formation is not widely known.  He is a contemporary illustration “… that a prophet hath no honour in his own country”. 

Jeremy attended a Transparency International meeting earlier this month, at which Sir Ken Keith spoke on “Bringing the lamp of scrutiny to dark places”, Disappointingly the opportunity was not taken to recognise Jeremy’s long influence on the evolution of Transparency  International,. Many of those attending were unaware of who he was or of that contribution. An allusion in Sir Ken’s presentation went unappreciated by most.

The Corruption Perceptions Index and the National Integrity System assessment on which TI’s high profile is founded, were largely Jeremy’s work.  He created the metaphor that an integrity system is an ancient Greek temple with mutually reinforcing pillars. He was amused by academics who deconstructed his work and portrayed the integrity system as a birdsnest.

His design of the Corruption Perceptions Index was unpopular in some countries. When the first CPI was collated in 1995, with New Zealand rated best, and Indonesia rated worst, a prominent Indonesian was known to comment that the results were as expected – Pope was a New Zealander; it would be improbable for there to be any other outcome.

His belief that there should be less energy spent on measuring levels of corruption, and a greater commitment made to supporting integrity in action meant he distanced himself from Transparency International and created Tiri.

In 2006, the State Services Commissioner at the time ( Mark Prebble ) enlisted Jeremy’s participation on an advisory committee on the Standards of Integrity and Conduct for the State Services.  The committee supported the Commission’s consideration of proposals for implementing the code and the material prepared to support the training of staff.

www.transparency.org/news/pressrelease/29082012_passing_of_founding_member_jeremy_po

www98.griffith.edu.au/dspace/bitstream/handle/10072/4158/32116_1.pdf?sequence=1

http://archive.transparency.org/policy_research/surveys_indices/cpi/previous_cpi

www.tiri.org/joy/jeremy-pope-%E2%80%93-memoriam

 

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August 31, 2012

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Gifts to Australian politicians published

31 August 2012

The Sydney Morning Herald today report’s that Fairfax media engaged journalism students to collate the gifts and benefits obtained by Australian politicians but which are not published in an accessible form. Release of this material will focus public attention on the willingness of those in politics to disclose the personal advantages they receive. Apparently MPs have been content to provide manuscript returns which are not then processed in any way which provides the transparency intended by disclosure rules. What attracted the paper’s attention was the frequency with which MPs and their families received upgraded travel from Qantas. The greatest beneficiary of this was the wife of former Prime Minister Rudd.

The disclosure regime in New Zealand has more rigor than the federal requirements in Australia – and much more than most State parliaments require. However the value threshold in New Zealand of $500 for any gift – which includes hospitality – given to the MP or a relative (ranging from parent to grandchild) means much of the material “uncovered” by the SMH is not included in New Zealand’s readily accessible Register of MPs’ Pecuniary Interests. No air travel upgrades seem to feature in the New Zealand register – although if occurring in conjunction with any international travel the gift threshold would have been exceeded.

Both Australia and New Zealand are shown on an OECD compilation of transparency issues that politicians must disclose gifts and benefits.

The example which is considered “best practice” is the register maintained by the Scottish Parliament. Entries are recorded in plain English but without a limiting threshold; for example the return by Jackie Baillie the Dumbarton MSP includes benefits valued as low as $50.

www.smh.com.au/opinion/political-news/qantas-rains-free-upgrades-upon-politicians-20120829-2515a.html

 www.theage.com.au/national/political-interests

www.parliament.nz/en-NZ/MPP/MPs/FinInterests/a/d/0/00CLOOCMPPFinInterests2012additional1-Register-of-Pecuniary-Interests.htm

www.scottish.parliament.uk/S4_StandardsProceduresandPublicAppointmentsCommittee/General%20Documents/ROI_for_Parly_year_07_to_08.pdf

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August 30, 2012

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Dogs may not be a politican’s best friend

30 August 2012

 

It is not unknown for public servants to harbour uncertainty about the motivation of politicians and to mutter in confidence with colleagues about the commitment as they see it, to the public good.

Politicians in turn seem perpetually surprised by the caution shown by officials, their ingrained practice of recording all supporting evidence for a particular course before acting, and their reluctance to respond when circumstances clearly call for a passionate and impulsive response.  The current climate is that views of many offiicals differ substantially from their Ministers.

The Guardian yesterday published comment about the ability of the UK Treasury to support a U turn by the Government if Ministers conclude that a different approach to tackling Britain’s economic woes is necessary – the purport being that where you have good government, you have officials not only striving to give effect to the policies of government, but always maintaining a capacity to sharply change direction, if that is the wish of Ministers.  Part of the responsibility of officials is to support MPs appointed to the executive, to ensure the stability of government, and to give effect to the expectations of Ministers by strengthening the rationale for their decisions .

But officials need to appreciate the trials and tribulations  experienced by politicians who believe the burden of democracy they carry and their pursuit authority to exercise decision-making  discretions is deprecated.

An anecdote told at dinner last night by a politician’s wife may be illustrative  the trials.

In much of Britain, houses still have a “hole” in the front door for mail delivery.  Postal workers would drop letters through the door – and within living memory there was both an early and a late delivery each day.

The wife of a prospective politician in the West of Scotland, despite her reluctance, was cajoled with her children into delivering campaign leaflets championing his candidacy. The wife was directed by her husband to ensure the leaflets were pushed fully though the mail hole so that they would not be caught in the door and the message never read.

At one house the wife made sure she pushed her hand well through the hole as directed, ensuring the leaflet dropped into the entranceway. However the household dog seized the delivering hand. A tug of war developed for the return of the hand.  The dog’s teeth began to shred the hand.  When eventually recovered, substantial surgery was required.

(From observation almost a year after campaigning, the injuries are extensive and permanently disabling.  The wife’s interest in supporting the politician is substantially diminished!)

www.guardian.co.uk/business/2012/aug/26/u-turn-civil-service-happy-to-help

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August 30, 2012

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Call for additional Australian corruption agency

28 August 2012

Last week the chair of the Australian Law Enforcement Integrity select committee called for an anti-corruption agency to be set up.  She wants to reinforce enforcement by the Australian Federal Police and the Crime Commission, and strengthen the investigation of malpractice by federal agencies. This is part of the fall-out from the involvement of two subsidiaries of the Reserve Bank in corrupt activities.  Senior staff at Note Printing Australia and Securency, have acknowledged that payments were made to foreign officials to gain contracts.

The Australian Securities and Investment Commission has said that it doesn’t intend to prosecute Securency for securities offences, although both NPA and Securency entered guilty pleas in October last year to charges of conspiring to bribe government decision makers in Vietnam, Malaysia, Nepal and Nigeria.

The select committee chair felt that these revelations “…have laid bare the gaping hole in the oversight of the Commonwealth public sector…,”

The Reserve Bank Governor told a select committee last week that the Bank had responded appropriately to authorities and that there had been no cover up.

The Accountability Round Table, chaired by a former Victorian Supreme Court judge and made up of politicians, academics and lawyers supports the call for a federal anti-corruption body. The Greens leader is also supportive, advocating a federal equivalent of the various State corruption commissions.

 

http://www.abc.net.au/am/content/2012/s3575762.htm

 

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August 28, 2012

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The “Kiwis Count” increases

29 August 2012

The ‘spirit of service to the community’’ seems to be in a satisfactory condition if ‘Kiwis Count’ data is a measure.  The latest survey provides some encouraging information about public experiences of government services.  Despite the tightening circumstances, the outcome focus of agencies – the commitment to effectiveness in giving the support that their service users want – would appear to be getting good results.

Kiwis Count shows that the satisfaction trend is improving.   When the survey was first conducted in 2007 overall satisfaction levels at 68% were very close to the Canadians – the survey tool is an adaption of the Canadian model. That improved in 2009 to 69%, equal to the best result in Canada, and on yesterday’s published results New Zealanders now have a average 72% satisfaction with the range of public services assessed by the survey.

The State Services Commission commentary on the survey indicates that the better rated satisfaction measure related to the service being  “…’ an example of good value for tax dollars spent’. On a five point agreement scale, with 5 being ‘Strongly agree’, 73 percent of respondents rated the value for money of their most recent experience as either a four or a five (up from 55 percent in 2007). This change in the public’s rating of value for money, combined with the increases for the other drivers, contributed to the increase in the overall service quality score…”

The health of the spirit of service may perhaps be more heartily diagnosed if the survey respondents had shown  greater improved appreciation of some of the other factors – that the service experience met  expectations, staff were competent, you were treated fairly, staff did what they said they would do ,and that your individual circumstances were taken into account.

The corelation between experience of public services and the Performance Improvement Framework of agencies will be an interesting one to explore.  An uninformed view would suggest that they are mutually supporting.

I wonder why, in the Kiwis Count questionnaire, the spelling differs between a fishing license  and a driver’s licence?

 

www.ssc.govt.nz/kiwis-count-update-aug12

http://www.ssc.govt.nz/drivers-report

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August 28, 2012

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Sound the horn – the quango hunt resumes

27 August 2012

The British Government’s hunt for quangos has led to the demise of more than 100 over the last 18 months. A Cabinet Office Minister report last week was that by 2015,  savings will be worth at least £1.4bn  The down side is that no savings have yet been made and the estimated cost of the cull, at about £900m, is higher than anticipated.

The Minister’s aim is to abolish 204 agencies, ultimately saving at least £2.6bn – although an Audit Office report this year indicated that Departments had not yet explained precisely how these savings would be achieved.

The British Prime Minister has referred to the abolition or merger of many of the 900 agencies that existed at the last general election as a “bonfire of the quangos”.

The Public Bodies Act has empowered the changes, with 106 public bodies now gone from the machinery of government and more than 150 bodies now merged into fewer than 70.

But the Cabinet Office now says that it expects the transition costs to be “between £600m and £900m”. The Minister said the £2.6bn target was the equivalent of £150 saved for every working household in the country.

The Government has been critical of the “…bloated quangocracy that had spiralled out of control. Not only were these unaccountable bodies costing the taxpayer billions, but they were duplicating bureaucracy,”  Apparently the planned closures and mergers will not be the end.  The Minister has said that the Government “….will continue to review all remaining quangos to ensure that never again will we end up with so many of these vast bureaucratic and unaccountable bodies.”

The Guardian points out that it takes two to make the system work efficiently and effectively. The relationship between government and its arm’s length bodies is fundamental to this. What is required as a focus, not simply on the mechanisms for reducing costs, but also on strengthening the relationship between quangos and departments.

The report “It takes two” suggests a framework for such improvements in relationships.   It cannot be achieved by the Government alone.  It will take two to deliver the outcomes and cost savings expected by the Ministers.

And contemporaneously, in Australia the issue of a fourth or integrity branch of government encompassing a number of arms-length agencies is getting a reprise.  This group includes a number of quangos, the equivalents of those being affected by the changes in the UK.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quango

www.instituteforgovernment.org.uk/publications/it-takes-two

http://foi-privacy.blogspot.co.uk/2012/08/the-emerging-integrity-branch-of.html

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August 27, 2012

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Are Privacy reports on ACC a case of the cap fitting?

24 August 2012

Reports by both the Privacy Commissioner / KPMG  and the Auditor General into mishandling of personal information at ACC do not position the players in a good light. Both reports have observations about organisational culture and the impact on handling information.

As an agency to which the State Services Standards of Integrity and Conduct have been applied, questions arise regarding the commitment by ACC to that code, and the statutory requirement that “…an agency (including its employees) must comply…”

The Head of the State Services has commented that he is treating the findings of the reports seriously and is considering asking State sector agency chief executives to review their systems for handling personal information.  He refers to some good practice in the public sector, but is concerned that poor handling could undermine trust in State servants. As many employees in the public sector and in state sector agencies are not State servants, some may be confused by his conflated connection.

The Commissioner made no reference to a number of standards in the code of conduct which, from the tenor of the reports, seem to have had little influence on the leadership of ACC. In particular the standard that ACC and its employees  “… must treat information with care and use it only for proper purposes…” 

The Commissioner’s guidance about the code includes an explanation that

“…proper management of information is central to the integrity of the State Services. We have a duty to handle official information appropriately and ensure that personal privacy rights are preserved. We must all be familiar with legal obligations relating to the protection and release of official information. Statutory privacy principles must always govern the handling of personal information.  ….Public perception about the integrity of an organisation will be shaped by the way it manages information…. The obligation for honesty is pervasive…”

And repeated references in the reports to culture and fear must have implications for compliance with the standard that “…We must treat everyone with respect …” The Commissioner’s guidance explains that this means the public we serve and the colleagues we work with. “…This requires being courteous and contributing to the smooth functioning of our workplaces by:

  • not discriminating against anyone, except as legally required to give effect to our organisation’s functions
  • protecting the privacy of people accessing services
  • not harassing, bullying or otherwise intimidating members of the public or colleagues
  • respecting the cultural background of members of the public and colleagues
  • having proper regard for the safety of others
  • avoiding behaviour that may endanger or cause distress to colleagues
  • not allowing workplace relationships to adversely affect our work performance
  • valuing equality and diversity by understanding our differences…”

Something seems to have been missing at ACC in the commitment to promoting the Commissioner’s standards, integrating them into the way ACC operated, modelling those standards by all ACC managers, and taking decisive action on any breaches  – as in the “six trust elements”. The Commissioner said following the 2010 State Services Integrity Survey that agencies “… need an integrity plan based on the six trust elements and they need to be committed to implementing it…”

It seems ironic that on the same day that reports were released about ACC, Elizabeth Murdoch  in her James MacTaggart Memorial Lecture  should observe that “…there has been such an unsettling dearth of integrity across so many of our institutions…”

www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/7538313/Culture-of-fear-at-ACC

http://privacy.org.nz/privacy-commissioner-urges-acc-culture-change-media-release/

http://oag.govt.nz/2012/inquiry-acc-board-level-governance/part5.htm

www.scoop.co.nz/stories/PO1208/S00364/coalition-welcomes-opportunity-provided-by-reports.htm

www.ssc.govt.nz/code-guidance-stateservants

www.ssc.govt.nz/node/5402

www.independent.co.uk/news/media/press/we-need-honesty-and-integrity-was-this-liz-murdochs-pitch-to-take-over-8076662.html

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August 24, 2012

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You can lead a horse to water

23 August 2012

Blog writing involves ego – why should anyone be interested in the writer’s views? It also requires a thick skin – a persistence to publish regardless of the size of the readership. And in the case of Integrity Talking Points it is quite common for there to have been fewer than 50 readers on a given day. The heartening occasions are when influential sources like the BBC publish a link, and readership leaps exponentially…but a fall back to the norm can occur just as spectacularly. It is therefore consoling to see entities with resources to promote their mission experience a similar loss of traction.

Youtube clips published on the State Services Commission about the Performance Improvement Framework and Better Public Services reflect an SSC initiative to make user friendly resources available universally. The audience targeted, in the first instance, will be people working for public sector agencies. The State Services Commissioner now has the appointment title as Head of the State Services. The videos explain change and expectations affecting more than 200,000 State servants. It seems that most have as little interest in watching the State Services Commission presentations on Youtube as they have in reading Integrity Talking Points!

As I write , there have been only 20 hits on the Performance Improvement video and fewer than 15 people have watched the Better Public Services clip (and I have watched both several times.)

You can lead a horse to water….

www.youtube.com/watch?v=4QByxH1xsRI&feature=relmfu

www.youtube.com/watch?v=UCy5k4z2wlc&feature=relmfu

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August 23, 2012

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News Corp announces new focus on integrity compliance

22 August 2012

After its very public troubles, News Corp, the Murdoch media empire is to eat humble pie.  Having initially refuted  any serious misconduct allegations, the evidence given to the Leveson inquiry has apparently placed the Board in a position where it feels a need to be seen to be responsive to public opinion. Senior members of the company had given evidence that they were unaware of the continuing and coordinated hacking into the phones of not only prominent people but also a murder victim.  If they were so ill informed of how the business operated, they could hardly avoid introducing much tighter operational controls.

News Corp is now to have a global ethics team.  The team will be led by a compliance officer responsible for enforcing ethics and a particular focus on raising awareness of anti bribery laws. This new role for the current general counsel is to eliminate the circumstances which have painted News Corp staff as amoral if not unlawful.  With more than 60 arrests related to the News Corp activities, and prosecutions underway in more than a dozen cases,  likely convictions will confirm that the story-gathering activities of News Corp staff were criminal.

Reuters has reported that the experience  “has rocked Murdoch’s News Corp titles in Britain, put the notoriously aggressive British press under the spotlight with a far-reaching investigation into media ethics, the Leveson Inquiry, and embarrassed senior politicians, including British Prime Minister David Cameron, over cozy ties…”  Murdoch has been described by an influential commentator as unfit to run a major  company.

The explanation given to the company’s employees is that … “ our company has been under intense scrutiny in the United Kingdom. I assured parliament and the Leveson inquiry that we would move quickly and aggressively to redress wrongdoing, co-operate with law enforcement officials and strengthen our compliance and ethics programme company-wide. With the support of our board of directors, I am pleased to tell you that we have made progress on each of these important steps.”

The company needs to be aware that having standards is not sufficient. The importance of the “6 trust elements” is as applicable in the commercial sector as it is in government. Once standards are promulgated, they need to be promoted widely and regularly throughout the company.  The underpinning principles, embodied in company policies, must reflect the standards. Managers must model those standards and ensure staff have confidence that there is a total commitment to abiding by them.  There needs to be prompt and effective action when breaches are discovered and staff need to understand that enforcement action if breaches occur will be swift and unavoidable.

  • Standards must be set.
  • Staff must know what the standards are.
  • The standards must be central to “the way we do things around here”.
  • Managers must “walk the talk”.
  • Decisive action must be taken on breaches.
  • The consequence of a breach must be known by all.

The reluctance shown by News Corp to acknowledge it had a problem in the way staff operated to acquire stories, may not augur well for its advocacy of, and insistence on, higher standards of integrity.

www.reuters.com/article/2012/08/15/us-newscorp-idUSBRE87E0SH20120815

www.guardian.co.uk/media/2012/aug/15/rupert-murdoch-news-corp-anti-corruption?newsfeed=true

www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/crime/names-of-up-to-600-victims-of-phone-hacking-to-be-revealed-8070018.html

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August 22, 2012

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Comparing codes of conduct ; the TI view

21 August 2012

Space for Transparency, the blog published by Transparence International features a concise comparison of the codes of conduct applying to central government officials in Australia, the United States and the United Kingdom.

“Codes of conduct in action; common law states” is the fourth article in a series looking at the key features of codes, the different applications in different country contexts, the extent of their coverage, and their overall effectiveness. The intention is to consider what is needed to ensure that the codes don’t become politicised, that they are fit for purpose in getting officials to behave better and catching them when they don’t.

Transparency International sees the articles forming a rule book for what it expects from those in the public service – helping citizens, communities, and officials better understand the benefits and challenges of using codes  to build the overall integrity of government.

The comparison of Australia, US and UK highlights the differences in aspiration and effect, despite the common law jurisdiction which they share.

“For example in the United States, the code of conduct covers all federal officials and employees … including elected members of Congress. This feature contrasts with other common law countries, such as the United Kingdom, where specific codes have been adopted based on different types of public servant or officials.

The United States also stands apart from other common law countries in that it sets a very strict and low value for gifts that can be accepted by public officials. The question of gifts, as noted in this blog series, is covered but can often be handled more loosely depending on the cultural context and accepted practices.

The … post looks more in-depth at the US as well as those established in other common law countries, including Australia and the UK. It provides information on the reach of coverage and how these codes are currently being implemented in practice. …”

Other articles were  titled:

  • Codes of conduct: a tool to clean up government?
  • Codes of conduct: benefits and challenges
  • Codes of conduct and the legal system: ideas and implications

The next post in the series will focus on examples from continental law countries.

http://blog.transparency.org/2012/08/17/codes-of-conduct-in-action-common-law-states/

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August 21, 2012

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