Consultation: Code of Conduct for the Public Sector

20 October 2025

We are currently updating the Code of Conduct to ensure the minimum standards of integrity and conduct are relevant for our modern Public Sector. 

The Code of Conduct for the Public Sector (the Code) is being updated to reflect key provisions of the Public Service Act 2020 (the Act). This includes the Public Service values and principles. 

The Code sets minimum standards of integrity and conduct for public servants and the Public Sector (as defined in the Code). It also supports a pro-integrity culture and public understanding of the conduct they can expect of people working in the Public Sector. 

The current Code 'Standards of Integrity and Conduct' was issued in 2007 and while many of the minimum standards are still relevant, some new standards need to be included. 

Standards of Integrity and Conduct (current Code)

Consultation and next steps

Consultation on the draft Code closed on 17 October 2025.  

We are now analysing feedback received during consultation, and finalising the Code.  

We intend to issue the refreshed code by the end of 2025.  

You can find out more about our consultation approach in the FAQs below. 

The draft Code of Conduct that was consulted on can be found here: 

Updated Code of Conduct for consultation(PDF, 304 KB)

You can compare this to the current Code of Conduct here:

Current Code of Conduct of conduct for public servants

You can also see how the minimum standards from the current Code of Conduct are reflected in the updated draft Code in this document:

How the minimum standards from the current Code are reflected in the updated Code(PDF, 159 KB)

 

Privacy statement

We collect your name and email address so that we can send you updates on the outcome of this consultation or to contact you about the feedback you provide. If you choose not to provide your name, role or email address we’ll still process your feedback but won’t be able to contact you about it or provide you updates on this work.

We’ll keep your information safe by storing it in encrypted files and only allowing certain staff to access it. We don’t share this information with any third parties. You have the right to ask for a copy of any personal information we hold about you, and to ask for it to be corrected if you think it is wrong.

If you’d like to ask for a copy of your information or have it corrected, please contact us at:

codeconsultation@publicservice.govt.nz

+64 4 495 6600

PO Box 329, Wellington 6140

FAQs

  • What is the Code of Conduct?

    The Standards of Integrity and Conduct is the current Code of Conduct for public servants and the State Services. This has been in place since 2007.

    Standards of Integrity and Conduct

    The Code sets minimum standards of integrity and conduct for public servants and the public sector organisations they work in. It outlines how public sector agencies should operate and how its people are expected to behave.

    The Code encourages ethical behaviour and decision-making, while fostering a culture centred on a spirit of service, integrity and transparency. This is intended to maintain and strengthen the trust and confidence of the Government and the public in our ability to perform our roles efficiently and effectively, with the highest standards of integrity.

  • Who will the updated Code apply to?

    The updated Code is intended to apply to all agencies, groups and individuals (for example, public servants) of the organisations defined in section 17(2) of the Public Service Act 2020 (excluding school boards). Those organisations are:

    • Public service agencies, including departments, departmental agencies, interdepartmental executive boards, interdepartmental ventures, and includes Crown agents
    • Crown entities (other than Crown agents and excluding tertiary education institutions, and Crown Research Institutes and their subsidiaries)
    • Companies named in Schedule 4A of the Public Finance Act 1989
    • the Parliamentary Counsel Office.

    For a full list of the organisations under each of these categories, visit the page below.

    Central government organisations

  • When will the updated Code take effect?

    We anticipate reissuing the updated Code to applicable agencies and entities at the end of 2025 to come into effect in early 2026 (dates to be confirmed).

  • How is the Code implemented in agencies?

    Agencies implement the Code by having policies and procedures consistent with it. This means either adopting the Code outright or adapting it to their own organisational context in a way that is consistent with the Code. Each agency is encouraged to promote awareness of the Code and the behavioural expectations that flow from it.

    The Code’s implementation is supported by our Speaking Up model standard. Speaking Up requires agencies to have mechanisms that enable public servants to confidentially speak up about wrongdoing in their agencies while keeping them safe from reprisals or other detrimental impacts.

    Model standards: Speaking up in the public sector

  • Will the updated Code change what is expected of me and my agency?

    Updating the Code does not change the general expectation that public servants abide by the Code. Everyone who the Code applies to will need to understand, and uphold the Code, just as they do now.

    The Code is not, on its own, sufficient to ensure that everyone meets its standards. Public sector agencies will still be required to have policies and procedures that reflect the standards in their own organisational context. They are also still required to ensure that their employees know what is expected of them to uphold the Code, and to provide relevant support for this.

    Each agency is encouraged to promote awareness of the Code and the behavioural expectations that flow from it.

    There will be a new requirement to complete training on integrity and the Code which we are currently developing. We are aiming for the training to be ready when the Code comes into effect. This is intended to help public servants to understand the code and expectations across key areas of public sector integrity.

  • What work has happened on updating the Code so far?

    In 2022 and 2023 we completed extensive engagement with agencies and key stakeholders such as academics and unions. Alongside research, insights from these engagements have informed the Code update.  

    In 2025 we refreshed this work to build on what we’ve done so far, engaging key stakeholders before opening consultation on thea draft Code. As part of our consultation, we invited feedback from all agencies the Code will apply to. Some further targeted engagement also occurred with unions and academics. Consultation was openly accessible to the public on our website. 

    Our focus has been to bring the Act’s Public Service values and principles to life through the Code, while ensuring it may continue to drive high standards of integrity and conduct across the public sector. Enabling our roles in serving the Government of the day and supporting public trust and confidence in the public sector’s people and organisations are also key factors informing this work. 

  • Next steps
    • We are analysing feedback received from our consultation so that we may finalise the Code. 
    • When a final version is ready and approved by the Public Service Commissioner, it will be issued to the Public Sector organisations to which it applies. This is anticipated for the end of 2025, to take effect in 2026. We will publish the new Code on our website. 
    • Those Public Sector organisations will then be required to ensure that the public servants they employ are aware of the new Code and how it applies to them in their work. 

    We will work with Public Sector organisations to support implementation of the Code, with a particular focus on mandatory training. 

    If you would like updates on the process, please email us: codeconsultation@publicservice.govt.nz