In this connection, I wish to emphasise the desirability and timeliness of independent public institutions having this type of ethical conduct framework, as a key element to proper performance by their high-level officials of their roles. From this standpoint, the aforementioned Code of Conduct for high-level European Central Bank Officials includes ethical conduct criteria that are particularly relevant to independence, impartiality, professional secrecy and public and private appearances by those high-level officials, in addition to specific obligations for avoiding conflicts of interest, for relationships with interest groups, for private financial transactions and for advantages, awards and invitations offered as a result of their positions (for more details, see Annex 5). As I reported to this very Parliament, early this year the Banco de España approved its Strategic Plan, whose essential content has been made public. Based on an analysis of the challenges facing the institution and its main strengths and weaknesses, the plan sets out the priority objectives for the coming years and the actions required to accomplish them. Aside from the importance of this exercise from the standpoint of internal coordination, I believe the drawing up and publication of this plan is a fundamental transparencyenhancing factor that will facilitate evaluation of the effectiveness of the Bank’s actions. Accordingly, under the Strategic Plan our activities will be subject to assessments. Should you see fit, we could report to this House on the content of the Strategic Plan, headway made in its implementation and the results of the assessments.
I will now turn to another aspect that is key to understanding the correct configuration of an independent authority: good governance. This is understood not only in terms of observing certain basic principles of public action (such as efficacy and effectiveness) or of impartiality and due diligence, but also of implementing procedures and collegiate decisions to ensure that the primary institutional course of action is to uphold the public interest. As I have already said, the Banco de España has collegiate bodies, such as the Governing Council and the Executive Board. These, along with the Governor and the Deputy Governor, make up its governing bodies. The fact that these collegiate bodies have broad powers in relation to the functions of the Bank and that a majority (six) of the members of the Governing Council are elected and have recognised competence in the field of economics, the financial system or the legal arena, reinforces the independence of our institution. 17  https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/HTML/?uri=CELEX:52019XB0308(01)&from=EN  12  A further good governance practice is having a structure of committees to support the governing bodies. These are able to appropriately assess and address the various matters that fall within the organisation’s remit, ensuring an overall view and that all the relevant areas of the institution participate in the analysis of the issue concerned.