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While building strong and resilient communities and regions and ensuring the responsible and sustainable use of our State’s resources, we have a responsibility to achieve value for money for the people of NSW. This includes ensuring that all our business relationships are honest, ethical, fair and consistent.
While working with us, our commercial partners share the same responsibilities. Compliance with our Statement of Business Ethics is a condition of doing business with us. By observing the requirements outlined below, you will be supporting our values and demonstrate that you understand our business and service to NSW.
As stewards of the physical and cultural treasures of New South Wales (NSW), we create great places and experiences for all, plan for a changing and thriving NSW, inspire strong and resilient communities and regions, and ensure the responsible and sustainable use of our State’s resources.
We are committed to our values of Integrity, Trust, Service and Accountability, and we demonstrate this through:
We strive to deliver outcomes for the NSW public in the most responsible way. We ensure that our policies, procedures and practices are in line with best practice and the highest standards of ethical conduct. Our staff work in the interest of the NSW public and comply with the Government Sector Employment Act 2013 and our Code of Ethics and Conduct.
When doing business with you, we will:
The NSW public to expect us to spend public money in the most efficient, effective and ethical way, and they hold us accountable if we don’t. As our commercial business partners (including contractors, sub-contractors and suppliers), you are working with us to deliver our outcomes, and we expect that you will uphold our values and operate to the same standard that is expected of us.
What does this look like in practice?
In line with NSW Government procurement frameworks, policies, and codes of practice, we and commercial business partners will maintain business relationships based on open and effective communication, respect and trust, and adopt a non-adversarial approach to dispute resolution.
Not complying with our ethical requirements when doing business with us may indicate corrupt or unethical conduct, which could lead to:
A lobbyist is any party whose business includes representing the interests of others to a NSW Government official. If you are or might be a lobbyist, consult our Lobbyists contact web page prior to that communication with us.
The Lobbying of Government Officials Act 2011 defines all of our employees and contractors as `Government officials’ with specific obligations, to only deal with lobbyists who are on the NSW Electoral Commission register of lobbyists.
You must not offer any incentive or attempt to improperly influence our staff in relation to any aspect of their work as a public official.
You must not give gifts to our employees, pay or offer to pay for any form of entertainment for our employees, including, but not limited to:
We expect our staff to decline gifts, and financial and non-financial benefits offered during the course of their work, in line with our Code of Ethics and Conduct.
Symbolic and modest expressions of appreciation, such as contributing to a conference, assisting a community group, and an employee’s attendance at an event as a guest may be allowed where a clear underlying business purpose exists, it is in the normal course of the Department’s business, relates to our work, and has a public benefit.
We will formally report and record all offers, acceptance, and non-acceptance of gifts, benefits, hospitality or inducements. Every guest invitation to our employees must be provided in writing so it can be recorded in our Gifts, Benefits and Hospitality Register.
If you would like to convey your appreciation for our work or an employee’s efforts, consider providing your feedback through the Contact Us website page.
We will not ask for, entertain, or enter into any sponsorship or similar arrangement that is not open and transparent or where such activity creates a perception that it could be part of an attempt to improperly influence decision-making processes.
Our equipment, resources and information must only be used for its proper official purpose as stipulated in our Code of Ethics and Conduct. We have a responsibility to manage resources in the public interest and seek the best value for money outcomes. That includes the prevention of over servicing, preventing over ordering and avoiding other wasteful uses of resources.
All of our employees and contractors are required to promptly disclose any actual, perceived, or potential conflicts of interest. We extend this requirement to you.
Our employees must disclose conflicts of interest as prescribed in our Code of Ethics and Conduct which also describes types of conflicts and how to manage them. We expect that our business partners disclose such conflicts with our procurement division throughout their engagement with us.
In accordance with our Code of Ethics and Conduct, all employees must obtain the Secretary’s approval prior to entering into any private/secondary employment arrangement. Our employees must not use their position, government information, or intellectual property while serving Government to secure private employment.
Our commercial business partners must not offer our employees secondary private employment which conflicts with their public duties.
Former employees who have dealings with the Department must not disclose or seek favourable treatment or access to confidential information.
All contractors and sub-contractors are expected to comply with our Statement of Business Ethics. Our commercial business partners are responsible for making any of their sub-contractors aware of this statement.
Confidential information must be treated as such and protected as appropriate. The specific requirements of copyright laws and individual contracts must be adhered to.
We have a responsibility to meet our obligations under the following, and we extend this responsibility to all our commercial business partners:
We expect all our commercial business partners to respect each other’s intellectual property rights and formally negotiate any access, licence or use of intellectual property.
Our employees must not provide public endorsement of companies or their products on our behalf, as per our Code of Ethics and Conduct. All our commercial business partners must not make any public comment or statement that would lead anyone to believe that they are representing the Department or expressing its views or policies.
We do not tolerate corrupt conduct, maladministration, serious and substantial waste of public money, and other forms of serious wrongdoing. Our commercial business partners are required to report all information that they become aware of that shows potential or actual serious wrongdoing inside the Department and its related entities, and within our business partners.
Individuals and employees or officers of corporations) engaged by us under a contract to provide services to, or on behalf of, the Department are classified as ‘public officials’ under the Public Interest Disclosures Act 1994.
The Act provides protection for public officials from reprisal or detrimental action when disclosing corrupt conduct or other specific wrongdoing in line with requirements of the Act, and ensures that disclosures are appropriately investigated and handled.
To report misconduct, breaches of this Statement or to get advice, you can contact the following:
Telephone
Executive Director, Governance
1300 305 695
Post
Executive Director, Governance
Confidential
Department of Planning, Environment, and Industry
GPO Box 39, Sydney NSW 2001
Online Complaint Reporting
Use our Contact Us website page
Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC)
For matters involving NSW public officials
Telephone: 1800 463 909
NSW Ombudsman
For matters of maladministration
Telephone: 02 9286 1000 or 1800 451 524 (outside Sydney metro)
Audit Office of NSW
For serious and substantial waste
Telephone: 02 9275 7100
Email: governance@audit.nsw,gov.au
NSW Police Force - Crime Stoppers
For criminal matters
Telephone: 1800 333 000 (takes anonymous reports)
Page last updated: 21/09/2020