The importance of the ACT's Public Service Code of Ethics will be "reinforced" to staff working across the ACT's Land Development Agency and Economic Development directorate in the wake of a series of controversial land and business deals.
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An internal review of governance issues across both ACT Government agencies was released last week, making eight recommendations for reforms in the wake of the controversial Glebe Park land deal - all of which the LDA has pledged to act on.
Auditor-General Maxine Cooper said separately last week that deal and two others involving businesses acquired under the City to the Lake project had lacked "transparency, accountability and rigour".
The governance review, by former Commonwealth Auditor-General Ian McPhee, has further highlighted a longer-term "under-investment in governance frameworks" inside the ACT's land development agencies that "increases the risks of sub-standard processes and sub-optimal outcomes".
Mr McPhee's review has also recommended all staff in the Economic Development stream and LDA be given an "emphasis" on the ACT Public Sector Code of Ethics and why it was "fundamental to the work of divisions - in guiding decisions, and a sense of what is important and what is right".
The report also highlighted "the regular transfer of staff between the Economic Development stream, the LDA and industry", that had created "an increased risk of potential or actual conflicts (of interest)."
"The (conflicts) policy could benefit from guidance in relation to previous employment, for example how to manage previous associations with tenderers where there is a proximity of involvement with specific projects or transactions," the report reads.
While not specifically tasked with examining individual LDA transactions, Mr McPhee found that "on key matters where there is uncertainty in interpreting legislative requirements, it is prudent to obtain formal legal advice to avoid the risk of breaching statutory requirements".
The report said that recent questions in the ACT Legislative Assembly about "the arrangements relating to, and authority for, the acquisition of a block of land adjoining Glebe Park" underlined the need for the LDA "to obtain legal advice to confirm or revise the current understanding" of the agency's statutory requirements.
A spokesman for the LDA said the agency was currently developing an implementation plan to act on Mr McPhee's recommendations which was "expected to be completed shortly", although no completion date was released.
"In light of the recent report by the Auditor-General on certain LDA acquisitions, the LDA will work with the incoming government to review the current direction and supporting procedures," he said.
