Hansard

Members—although there are not many of them here—might be more interested in this debate, which is bit less technical.

The central recommendations before Parliament today were born of the committee’s inquiry into registrable interests. Following the passing of the Interests of Members of the Scottish Parliament Act in 2006, a new regime came into force at the start of this parliamentary session.

The purpose of the register of interests and of members’ declaring relevant interests during parliamentary proceedings is to ensure that the activities of members of Parliament that may impact, or could be perceived to impact, on the manner in which they undertake their duties as parliamentarians are open to scrutiny by the public.

Over the course of this session, the SPPA Committee has considered a number of complaints under the code and members have lodged several hundred register entries. In the light of that experience, some questions arose about the new interests framework, and the committee decided to carry out an inquiry into its operation.

In undertaking the inquiry, the committee was guided by the following principles. First, the register of members’ interests should capture significant financial interests. Secondly, that should be done in the simplest possible way to make it as straightforward as possible for members to comply with the registration requirements. Last, but certainly not least, any proposed changes should be in the public interest and ensure that transparency and accountability are maintained. We believe that the inquiry recommendations clarify and simplify the register of members’ interests in line with those principles.

The committee proposes the following main changes to the categories of interest in the schedule to the 2006 act, and corresponding changes to the code. The remuneration category will be merged with the related undertakings category and members will no longer be required to register certain minor interests in that category. The election expenses category will be removed, given that those interests are already captured in members’ returns to the Electoral Commission. The information held by the Electoral Commission will be easily accessible on the Parliament’s website next session to ensure that anyone seeking the full picture of a member’s expenses will be able to view them easily. The sponsorship category will be removed, as its terms overlap significantly with the gifts category. In practice, a limited number of registrations fall under that category, and the majority of those will fall under the gifts category in future. The gifts category will fix the registration threshold for gifts at the start of a session instead of increasing the threshold as and when members’ salaries increase. The same change will apply to the heritable property and interest in shares categories. The gifts category will also exempt from registration donations towards election expenses, again because those are captured by the Electoral Commission. The overseas visits category remains unchanged.

The Interests of Members of the Scottish Parliament Act 2006 determination 2011, which is set out in annex E of the committee’s report, “MSPs’ Registrable Interests: Proposed Changes to the Code of Conduct”, sets out the form and content of the written statements that members of the Parliament are required to submit to the Standards, Procedures and Public Appointments Committee clerks at the start of the next session. That determination, which will replace the 2007 determination, reflects the changes to the categories proposed by the committee.

The determination will take effect from the date after the date of the first dissolution of the Parliament following the date on which this resolution is passed. Once that date is definite, the determination will be amended to reflect it.

Once the sums of money equal to 1 per cent and 50 per cent of a member’s salary are set out, the determination will be updated to reflect those figures where indicated. That will inform members of the financial thresholds for registering certain categories of interest.

The committee is required to consult Parliament on its recommendations, and so it issued a consultation to all members in June. We offer our thanks to those who responded, including those who responded to confirm that they supported the proposals in full. I also thank the Scottish Parliamentary Standards Commissioner for his response, which included his clear support for the recommendations on election expenses.

The committee has made changes to its proposals in response to comments from members, including the removal of a proposal to exempt the requirement to register remuneration by virtue of a member’s being a member of a cross-party group.

The committee did not consider it necessary to change its position in response to consultation on points to which it had given close consideration when developing its proposals.

The proposals that are set out in the report will come into force in the next session of Parliament. The changes to the code are mainly a result of the committee’s inquiry, but a number of other minor changes are proposed and are set out in the full report.

The committee is very aware of the wider context, and we appreciate that provisions in the Scotland Bill, which is being considered by the United Kingdom Parliament and the Scottish Parliament, may fundamentally change the nature of the members’ interests regime. Assuming that the resulting act contains provisions on members’ interests, transitional provisions will need to be put in place to allow the Scottish Parliament time to consider whether it wishes to make any fundamental changes to the existing regime. The 2006 act would then need to be amended or possibly even replaced to reflect those changes. As a result, it is likely to take the majority of the next Scottish parliamentary session to implement any significant changes.

The committee’s proposed revised categories are therefore likely to be in place for the next parliamentary session. If the interests regime is revised following the implementation of the Scotland Bill, I sincerely hope that the underpinning principles that the committee has used as a basis for making the changes informs the development of any future regime.

I move,

That the Parliament, considering that it is expedient to make certain modifications to the Schedule to the Interests of Members of the Scottish Parliament Act 2006 (asp 12), in exercise of the powers conferred by paragraph 10(1) of that Schedule—

makes the modifications to that Schedule that are contained in the Annexe to this resolution; and

provides that those modifications shall come into force on the date after the date of the first dissolution of the Parliament following the date on which this resolution is passed.

ANNEXE

MODIFICATIONS TO THE SCHEDULE TO THE INTERESTS OF MEMBERS OF THE SCOTTISH PARLIAMENT ACT 2006

Remuneration

1 (1) In the heading to paragraph 2 (Remuneration) of the Schedule, after “Remuneration” insert “and Related undertaking”.

(2) Paragraph 2 is amended as follows.

(3) At the beginning of that paragraph, insert—

“(A1) Where the circumstances are as described in sub-paragraph (1) or (1A).”

(4) In sub-paragraph (1)(f), delete the words “or any other work”.

(5) After sub-paragraph (1), insert

“(1A) Where a member is, or was—

(a) a director in a related undertaking; or

(b) a partner in a firm,

but does, or did, not receive remuneration by virtue of being such a director or partner.”

(6) In sub-paragraph (2), insert after “corporation” the words “or of Convener, deputy Convener or member of a Committee of the Parliament”.

(7) After sub-paragraph (2), insert—

“(3) Sub-paragraph (1) does not apply where the remuneration received from a person on a single, or on more than one, occasion during the current parliamentary session consists solely of expenses unless those expenses amount, or amount in aggregate, to more than the specified limit.

(4) The exception in sub-paragraph (3) applies even although the remuneration received from that person on another occasion, or on other occasions, during that session does not consist solely of expenses.

(5) In this paragraph—

“current parliamentary session” means the parliamentary session which begins immediately after, or in which, the member is returned;

“a related undertaking” is a parent or subsidiary undertaking of an undertaking of which the member is a director and receives remuneration as a director as mentioned in sub-paragraph (1)(d); and

“specified limit” means 1% of a member’s salary (rounded down to the nearest £10) at the beginning of the current parliamentary session.”

Related undertaking, Election Expenses and Sponsorship

2 Paragraphs 3 (Related Undertaking), 4 (Election expenses) and 5 (Sponsorship) of the Schedule are deleted.

Gifts

3 (1) Paragraph 6 (Gifts) of the Schedule is amended as follows.

(2) In sub-paragraph (1), delete sub-paragraph (a) and the words “(b) that gift meets” and insert—

“(a) in the case where the gift was received from a person on a single occasion, the value of that gift, at the date on which it was received, exceeds the specified limit; or

(b) in the case where gifts were received from that person on more than one occasion during the current parliamentary session, the aggregate value of those gifts, at the dates on which they were received, exceeds the specified limit and, in either case,

(c) that gift or those gifts meet”

(3) In sub-paragraph (2),

(a) after “to” insert “(a)”;

(b) delete “(a)” (where it occurs for the second time) and insert “(i)”;

(c) delete “(b)” and insert “(ii)”; and

(d) after “the case may be” delete the full stop and insert—

“;

(b) any support (of any kind) provided by the services of a volunteer which are provided in that volunteer’s own time and free of charge; or

(c) a donation (of any kind) which is intended by the donor to be used for the purpose of meeting

(i) any campaign expenditure incurred in connection with the member’s campaign for election to a party office;

(ii) the election expenses of the member in relation to the election at which that member was returned as a member of the Scottish Parliament; or

(iii) the election expenses of the member in relation to any UK parliamentary election at which that member stands as a candidate,

but this exemption ceases to apply if the donation is not used for its intended purpose by the expiry of the 35th day after the election result is declared.”

(4) In sub-paragraph (3),

(a) delete “sub-paragraph (1)” and insert “this paragraph—

“candidate” has the same meaning as in section 118A, as read with section 90ZA(5) of the Representation of the People Act 1983;1

“campaign expenditure” includes expenditure incurred, whether before or after the member’s candidacy for election to the party office is announced or after the date on which the result of that election is declared, which can reasonably be described as being for the purposes of that campaign;”

and

(b) in the end of the definition of “controlling interest” delete the fullstop and insert—

“;

“current parliamentary session” means the parliamentary session which begins immediately after, or in which, the member is returned;

“election expenses”, in relation to a member, has the same meaning for the purposes of

(i) sub-paragraph (2)(c) (ii) as “election expenses” has in relation to a candidate in the order under section 12 of the 1998 Act which is in force for the purposes of the election at which the member was returned; and

(ii) sub-paragraph (2)(c)(iii) as “election expenses” has in section 90ZA of the Representation of the People Act 1983;2

“party office” means an office in a registered political party with which that member is connected;

“registered political party” means a political party registered under Part II of the Political Parties, Elections and Referendums Act 20006 and a member is “connected with” a registered political party if the member was returned at the election after contesting it as a candidate (whether for return as a constituency member or as a regional member) of that party; and

“specified limit” means 1% of a member’s salary (rounded down to the nearest £10) at the beginning of the current parliamentary session.“

Heritable Property

4 (1) Paragraph 8 (Heritable property) of the Schedule is amended as follows.

(2) In sub-paragraph (2)(a), delete the words “50 per cent of a member’s salary on that date (rounded down to the nearest £10)” and insert “the specified limit”.

(3) Delete sub-paragraph (2)(b) and insert—

“(b) any income is received from the heritable property during the twelve months prior to the relevant date.”

(4) In sub-paragraph (3)(a), delete “his or her own” and insert “ the member’s”.

(5) After sub-paragraph (7) insert—

“ (8) In this paragraph—

“current parliamentary session” means the parliamentary session which begins immediately after, or in which, the member is returned; and

“specified limit” means 50% of a member’s salary (rounded down to the nearest £10) at the beginning of the current parliamentary session.”

Interest in shares

5 (1) Paragraph 9 (Interest in shares) of the Schedule is amended as follows.

(2) In sub-paragraph (2)(b), delete the words “50 per cent of a member’s salary on that date (rounded down to the nearest £10)” and insert “the specified limit”.

(3) In sub-paragraph (3), delete “apply”.

(4) In sub-paragraph (3)(a), delete “his or her own name” and insert “ the name of the member (or relevant person)”.

(5) In sub-paragraph (8),

(a) insert after “paragraph”—

““current parliamentary session” means the parliamentary session which begins immediately after, or in which, the member is returned;”

(b) delete the words “(a)” and “and (b)”; and

(c) at the end of that sub-paragraph, delete the full stop and insert— “ ;

“specified limit” means 50% of a member’s salary (rounded down to the nearest £10) at the beginning of the current parliamentary session.”

1 1983 c 1

2 1983 c. 1

That the Parliament, in exercise of the powers conferred by sections 4(1) and 4(2) of the Interests of Members of the Scottish Parliament Act 2006 (asp 12)—

makes the Interests of Members of the Scottish Parliament Act 2006 (Form and Content of Written Statement) Determination 2011 as set out in Annexe E of the Standards, Procedures and Public Appointments Committee’s 9th Report 2010 (Session 3), MSPs’ Registrable Interests: Proposed Changes to the Code of Conduct with effect from the date after the date of the first dissolution of the Parliament following the date on which this resolution is passed;

revokes the Interests of Members of the Scottish Parliament Act 2006 (Form and Content of Written Statement) Determination 2007 with effect from the date after the date of the first dissolution of the Parliament following the date on which this resolution is passed; and

revokes the Interests of Members of the Scottish Parliament Act 2006 (Gross Income from Heritable Property) Determination 2007 with effect from the date after the date of the first dissolution of the Parliament following the date on which this resolution is passed.

That the Parliament agrees to amend the Code of Conduct for Members of the Scottish Parliament by replacing Volumes 1 and 2 with Volumes 1 and 2 as set out in Annexe D of the Standards, Procedures and Public Appointments Committee’s 9th Report 2010 (Session 3), MSPs’ Registrable Interests: Proposed Changes to the Code of Conduct, with effect from the date after the date of the first dissolution of the Parliament following the date on which this resolution is passed.

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