The maintenance of high standards of personal probity, ethical behaviour and conduct are intrinsic elements of good governance, together with effective scrutiny and efficient mechanisms for reporting on alleged misconduct by office holders. Faulty or dysfunctional governance is characterised by poor standards of conduct within governing elites, and limited or inadequate arrangements for scrutiny and accountability. The modern development of concerns about ministerial ethics, corruption, and standards of conduct in the UK system of government are examined in the context of the development, from the 1990s, of a nexus of standards and ethics bodies examining the conduct of politicians. The ad hoc, partial, and unsystematic nature of these developments are noted, and the key standards and ethics bodies are assessed against fundamental benchmarks of accountability. Some recent high profile cases of alleged and proven wrongdoing are also examined. It is argued that the disparate and uncoordinated nature of the nexus leads to limited independent scrutiny, and a system of accountability characterised by vacuums, varied performance and diluted effectiveness. The key arguments for systemic reform are summarised.

The question of ethics and integrity in the public sector provokes numerous academic and professional discussions with different answers. Some consider that a unique process of overlapping and permeation of new and old values has been taking place in recent decades, while others point out that contemporary society is characterized by a kind of confusion, value disorientation and an overemphasis on material aspects of life to the detriment of moral ones. The question of the value crisis and values confusion is particularly strong due to different political, economic, ecologic and health crises.

Should a solution to the unethical behaviour of public officials and public servants be sought at the level of particular measures in relation to the specifics of an individual country, or is it possible to reach a global consensus about the fundamental values and common principles that will be applicable everywhere in the world? What kind of institutional-normative framework should be developed at the international level and can it be efficient? The Council of Europe and other international organizations tried to answer these issues by creating a model code of conduct for public officials as a recommendation to countries to create their own codes of ethics or codes of conduct.

The paper has the main goal the examination of the congruence between the Model code of conduct of the Council of Europe with the codes of ethics or conduct of the selected European countries. Hence, the paper deals with three research questions. First, are there any provisions of the Model Code of the Council of Europe which represent a general ethical standard and which are implemented in the codes of all countries. Second, is there a difference between certain groups of countries with regard to compliance with the Model Code. Third, to what extent is the Croatian Code of Ethics for civil servants aligned with the Model code? The research should show to what extent the provisions of the codes of ethics and codes of conduct of individual European countries are harmonized with the provisions of the Model Code, whether there is a difference between them and whether the Model Code acts as a harmonizing document in these countries. Methodologically, the paper relies on normative analysis of the selected codes.

The United Nations Sustainable Development Goal 16 ‘Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions’ focuses on promoting peaceful and inclusive societies for sustainable development, providing access to justice for all and building effective, accountable, and inclusive institutions at all levels. The Hague, as the capital of international peace and justice, is working on this goal, by attracting and hosting tribunals, legal and UN institutions and NGOs focusing on peace, justice, and security. Since 2008, when mayor Jozias van Aartsen took office, the city externalised its brand more and more, by focusing on international actors and branding itself as true advocate of peace and justice worldwide. Additionally, the city of The Hague is stressing EU's climate policies with an active Alderman for Sustainability, Energy Transition and Climate Adaptation. How is this all relevant to the Younger Generation, especially youngsters in 'Power areas' of The Hague? This study looks at the conflicting perceptions about SDG16 and EU climate policies between young people in The Hague region and policymakers, people in the Peace and Justice ecosystem, and teacher in the area. The study makes use of Q-methodology and analysis and concludes with a discussion on the conflicts of perception and values. Seven groups of students of the Dutch Public Administration programme at The Hague University of Applied Sciences have collected data of 45 youth representatives and 10 policymakers, experts and teachers, and the research team added 30 more of the last category, in order to make a sound comparison between the two groups. The study concludes with some policy recommendations for The Hague on how to reach younger people and get them engaged with these topics mentioned above.