Ethics and Public Integrity in Contracting with Governments and Public Authorities

Abstract

In 1989, the Fitzgerald Inquiry identified instances where high level conflict of interest arose and were not avoided. Although making no finding of misconduct, Fitzgerald observed that there were occasions: " . . . when persons or organisations engaged in business with the Government or seeking business from it made substantial donations to its political party, which the processes adopted allowed to remain hidden. Those with whom dealings took place may have neither sought nor received preferential treatment and no conclusions of impropriety have been drawn however on the evidence before this Inquiry, including Cabinet records, there were a number of occasions when persons and organisations who were involved with transactions with the Government were also involved in personal dealings with one of its members, who nonetheless participated in and sometimes dominated the decisionmaking process."6 This situation appears to have arisen, either because of the absence of any formal code of conduct, or because of a failure by Ministers and others involved to be sufficiently scrupulous in identifying a conflict when it arose.