Page 39 - Aanbevelingen om de integriteit

allowances because of their specific working conditions. The main allowances include in particular
the irregular service allowance (VEB). Occasionally the manager can nominate an employee who
performs well with a merit allowance (granted for one year and capped at 10% of the salary) or with
a bonus (ranging from €100-€1000, the average amount per allowance per unit differs: €350/€500).
These rewards can in principle not be more than 20% of the gross annual salary per year. These
allowances are granted and audited for legitimacy by the brigade management team and HR
management at national level. Every year a financial budget is allocated to each brigade. This budget
is also used for financial remunerations.

198. The GET is pleased that ordinary salaries and allowances for special functions etc. are
statutorily fixed in both services. It notes that this is not the case in respect of bonuses for excellent
performance, helping colleagues, attitude and behaviour. The GET fully understands that bonuses in
various forms may be useful tools to encourage good behaviour in the service. That said, the GET
takes the view that such bonuses to individual employees may be decided on a too loose
discretionary basis, if they are not established on objective criteria. The GET did not come across any
misgivings in practice in this respect, but encourages the police authorities to keeping this system
under review.

Conflicts of interest

199. The GET notes that there is no general definition of conflicts of interest. That said, particular
situations of conflicts of interest are regulated to various degrees concerning, for example, secondary
activities and gifts etc. Furthermore, certain officials on designated posts are to declare their financial
interests as a preventive measure, but personal/commercial relations with associated persons and
family members etc. are not always recognised in this respect.

200. The GET takes the view that the rather narrow approach to what constitutes a conflict of
interest, except for certain specifically prescribed situations, limits the possibilities to deal with
unforeseen situations. This, in relation to the strong notion of trust within the system which where
the officials, in the first place, are to assess potential conflicts of interest by themselves (e.g. whether
an outside activity constitutes a conflict or not) opens up the use of “grey-zones”. The GET believes
that a more general definition of what may constitute conflicts of interest could be useful in this
respect. Moreover, such a definition should be combined with requirements to declare/report
potential situations of conflicts of interest within the police hierarchy. In such a way breaches of
duty, originating from different forms of unforeseen conflicts of interest, whether of a personal or a
financial nature, could be better prevented. A general definition of conflicts of interest and an ad hoc
reporting regime should preferably form part of a future code of conduct, as recommended in
paragraph 154.

Prohibition or restriction of certain activities

Incompatibilities and outside activities

201. The NPN and KMar employees must report any secondary activity that could affect police
interests and must have permission to exercise such secondary activities. However, there is no
reporting obligation if there is no conflict of interest; in the first place, the employees themselves are
to assess whether there is any conflict of interest with intended secondary activities. If the
employees are in doubt, they must consult their direct managers.

202. At the NPN, the general rules on secondary activities are included in Article 55a of the
General Legal Status (Police) Decree (BARP) and Article 14a of the Legal Status (Volunteer Police)
Decree (BRVP). The Secondary Activities Memorandum of 2014 lays down guidelines regarding the
prohibition of secondary activities (incl. criteria, statutory limitations and indicative examples of
situations). The memorandum provides an assessment framework for the permissibility of such

39