Governance Issues - an Update for Board Members
Handling conflicts of interest, public sector procurement that achieves value for money, the composition of boards and addressing issues in a citizen centred way were discussed in the Forum update on key issues for boards of public interest bodies on 5 February 2009.
David Waddell, Secretary of the Standards in Public Office Commission, outlined the key features of the ethics in public office acts. This includes defining for designated directors, what are material and disclosable interests and who are ‘connected persons’. He told participants that his office was also be open to assist anybody who would like clarification on specific issues.
Gerry Mulligan on the subject of Public Sector Procurement listed three key aspects – compliance with procurement rules, risk management and value for money. He recommended a Declaration of Possible Conflicts of Interest for persons involved in a procurement process. His presentation included a series of questions board members should ask on procurement in their organisations.
Paul Turpin in a presentation, An Update on Board Member’s responsibilities, drew a link between recent corporate governance controversies and the Government statements around ‘Transforming the Public Service’ to identify issues likely to be addressed in a new governance framework. These included the basis of relationships between public interest bodies and Government Departments, the composition of boards, the handling of cross cutting issues and the effectiveness of audit functions.