Hansard

My thanks go first to the SPPA Committee’s clerking team for their continued work on the proposed bill.

The proposal is relatively straightforward, and I will not take up too much of the chamber’s time on it. In essence, it moves payment of financial assistance—Short money—from being the responsibility of the Scottish ministers to being the responsibility of the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body. Recent events in the chamber notwithstanding, the corporate body is a non-partisan body that acts in the wider interests of the Scottish Parliament as an institution. It is right and more fitting that the corporate body takes on that responsibility.

As the convener mentioned, Short money has a surprisingly brief history in British parliamentary politics, dating back to only the mid-1970s. Short money provides support for political parties to support their MSPs to fulfil their parliamentary duties. In that context, it has a significant role to play in our parliamentary democracy.

In reality, the funds are already paid from the corporate body’s budget. Similarly, the corporate body already holds responsibility for other funding arrangements that relate to members, including the arrangements for salaries and expenses. That is uncontroversial, and I am sure that there would be a broad consensus that the approach is sensible.

Last June, the Scottish Government indicated its support for moving responsibility for financial assistance over to the SPCB. Although there may be differing views about the role of financial assistance for political parties, no other changes are proposed as part of the process. The proposed bill and its intent are straightforward—the passing of responsibility from one body to another—and will not change the underlying level or nature of payments made.

The committee has consulted on the process and the responses have been positive. It is, of course, important that the use of public funding continues to be transparent and properly administered. I have no reason whatsoever to doubt that the corporate body is up to that task.

The committee’s proposed legislation is sensible and straightforward. It brings financial assistance into line with other forms of imbursement and sets right an administrative abnormality that has existed since 1999. I hope that the proposal will find the support of the chamber.