New codes of conduct dealing with possible conflicts of interest arising when officials leave the Civil Service to take up employment in the private sector were introduced today by the Minister for Finance, Mr McCreevy.
Mr McCreevy said: "The code sets out, in a single document, the principles and standards which govern the behaviour of a modernised Civil Service."
He said that we were fortunate to have had, since the foundation of the State, a civil service in which the standards of probity have always been very high.
Nonetheless, he continued, "this is the 21st Century and just as so many other aspects of the public service have been modernised, so too should the standards of behaviour and service delivery which apply to the civil service."
Mr McCreevy said that the introduction of the code would, "in the context of the Civil Service modernisation programme, ensure that civil servants continue to deliver the highest quality of service to the Government, the other institutions of State and the public."
The Code is being introduced in compliance with section 10(3) of the Standards in Public Office Act 2001 and will, in the future, be used as a template for similar codes of conduct in other areas of the public service.