Meeting of the Parliament 29 May 2024
I have been very clear that my remarks relate to the principle—not the personality—and I invite Stephen Kerr to reflect on that point precisely in his remarks.
In the light of Stephen Kerr's comments, my point is that other members of the Standards, Procedures and Public Appointments Committee who also made public comments should have recused themselves. Another member declared in public that Mr Matheson’s position was “untenable”, that he should be “sacked” or quit his role as a minister and that his admission should not be believed. By any measure, that clearly prejudges the complaint and the sanction.
As such, we invite the SPCB to initiate an independent review of the Parliament’s complaints process in order to restore integrity and confidence in its procedures, so that all MSPs can have confidence in the Parliament’s processes and procedures.
I move amendment S6M-13368.1, to insert at end:
“; recognises that Stephen Kerr MSP resigned from the Standards, Procedures and Public Appointments Committee in March 2024 as he had made public pronouncements on this case ahead of the complaint being heard by the committee; agrees with Stephen Kerr MSP that to have remained as a committee member ‘would have been wrong’ as he ‘couldn’t meet the test to be unbiased’; notes that Annie Wells MSP also made public pronouncements on this case in advance of the complaint being heard by the committee and has remained a committee member throughout; agrees that this runs the risk of the committee report being open to bias and prejudice and the complaint being prejudged, thereby bringing the Parliament into disrepute; further agrees with the disappointment expressed by the Standards, Procedures and Public Appointments Committee that material relating to the committee’s deliberations appeared in the media prior to its decisions being reached and announced, and calls on the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body to initiate an independent review of the Parliament’s complaints process to restore integrity and confidence in the Parliament and its procedures.”
15:06Motions, questions or amendments mentioned by their reference code.