Main Challenges in the Field of Ethics and Integrity in the EU Member States

Transcription

1 Main Challenges in the Field of Ethics and Integrity in the EU Member States Danielle Bossaert Christoph Demmke In cooperation with the Irish and Dutch Presidencies of the European Union The European Commission supports EIPA through the European Union budget 2005, European Institute of Public Administration / Institut européen d administration publique Maastricht, the Netherlands / Pays-Bas

2 Table of Contents Pages Note on Authors Acknowledgements xi xiii SECTION I: Ethics in the Public Services of the EU Member States Danielle Bossaert and Christoph Demmke Executive Summary 3 I. General Remarks Introduction 13 II. Theoretical Aspects What is ethical or unethical behaviour? Definitions and concepts Fashion or not? Popular discussions about a very complex issue The change of values in our societies How effective are ethics and codes of ethics? Why not discuss the positive aspects of ethics? Are civil servants different because they are civil servants? The link between personality and organisational structure 36 III. Ethics in the Public Services of the EU Member States What are public service ethics? No easy answers: is ethical behaviour in the public sector different to the private sector? Unethical is not the same. What is unethical behaviour? Changing world, changing civil services, changing ethics 53 v

3 4.1 Why is there a need for specific public service ethics? Traditional and modern arguments and new dilemmas Where are we going? Civil service reform and its impact on ethics The link between organisational structures and ethics The difference between loyalty and neutrality Ethics in the enlarged European Union Is ethics of greater importance for the new Member States than for the old Member States? 73 IV. The Dimension of Unethical Behaviour Causes and Evidence Causes of unethical behaviour How serious is corruption and fraud? 81 V. Key Instruments for an Effective Strategy to Prevent Unethical Behaviour in the Public Sector of the 21 st Century The need for a multi-disciplinary and multi-dimensional approach Key contextual factors Key legal and managerial instruments The overall approach to ethics in the EU Member States and the European Commission Ethics: the legal framework. Basic principles Why public sector ethics require specific protection: The establishment of ethical rules in the constitutional and legal framework The key role of conflicts of interest regulations: Differing and common trends in the EU states and the European Commission The management challenge of integrity Why a purely punitive approach is not sufficient. The significance of incentive-related instruments in the field of human resource management The key role of leadership Which human resource management aspects should be used to foster ethics in the public sector? New instruments under scrutiny Where are codes of conduct being introduced and how is this taking place? 124 vi

4 4.2 Main conditions for effective functioning and implementation The significance of rules on whistleblowing 132 VI. Questionnaire: Ethics in the Public Service 135 Layers of Integrity 143 SECTION II: Working Towards Common Elements in the Field of Ethics and Integrity Christoph Demmke I. Introduction About this study The discussion on ethics within the European Public Administration network The Presidency s work on ethics up to II. Making the Right Diagnosis: Are Things Getting Better or Worse? Introduction Hypothesis 1: Unethical behaviour is not increasing. People are more aware of unethical behaviour. New signs of maturing societies? Hypothesis 2: Unethical behaviour is increasing Ethics and integrity: How to close the gap between theory and reality? Regulating values and behaviour how do you regulate what you cannot see? What do Member States have in common? Principles of integrity and democratic values New trends and new difficulties with public service ethics Introduction The changing face of the public service Who is a civil servant? who should be subject to civil service ethics? Conclusion: Caught in the paradox. What do we expect? 168 III. The Inventarisation of the Rules and Instruments which Apply in the Member States Introduction 169 vii

5 2. Regulatory activity and growing complexities at international level Ethics and the role of the European Union The regulation of ethics at international level The policy of the European Institutions on Ethics The choice of instruments at national level 181 IV. What Are the Practical Problems in the Implementation of the Rules and Instruments? Introduction Do we know what we are talking about? Addressing the main challenges Helping civil servants in the event of dilemmas and conflicting values Do decentralisation and individualisation comply with common ethical requirements? Identifying the impact of organisational structure and reform on public servants ethics 203 V. Examining and Analysing the Effectiveness of the Instruments and Rules in Use Achieving the right combination of instruments the politics of international organisations Introduction The need for multidimensional approaches and the pro-active role of international organisations The approach in the Member States of the EU different administrative and legal traditions and their importance for the choice of instruments Unity and diversity on the choice of instruments Codes of ethics Whistleblowing Conflicts of interest regulation Human Resource Management instruments common ethical challenges for all Member States in the 21 st century Leadership Rules on impartiality, politicisation, accountability and responsibility Mobility between the public and private sector Reform of recruitment procedures and their impact on ethics 235 viii

6 3.5 Flexibility of status and importance of life-time tenure Decent Salaries 238 VI. Establishing Guidelines for an Effective Integrity Policy at EU Level Common elements of integrity Optional solutions and strategies to maintain high standards of integrity in the national administrations 244 Annexes I. Main features of an Ethics Framework for the Public sector Presented by the Dutch Presidency, 22 November II. Resolution on Ethics and Integrity, November ix