Meeting of the Parliament 17 May 2023
I will deal with that matter, as it is specifically dealt with the in the committee’s unanimous report, which has been published and can be read by members in the chamber and people outside it who are watching and holding us to account.
We live in an age when there is a great deal of scepticism and mistrust of politicians. In order to challenge those perceptions, it is incumbent on us to act with integrity and to respect the rules in the code of conduct. It is also incumbent on us, in certain circumstances, to exclude a member from the proceedings of Parliament when that member has failed to comply with the requirement to declare an interest.
We fail ourselves and we undermine those founding principles if we do not uphold the requirements of our standards regime. For those reasons, I intend to write to all MSPs again next week, reminding them of the declaration requirements and encouraging them to seek advice from the clerks when they have any doubts about the correct approach to declarations.
With regard to the sanction that the committee has unanimously suggested, there are differences in this case. The committee is not required to follow a rule of precedent but deals with each case individually, fairly and following the rules of natural justice as it appears before us.
The committee’s unanimous decision is to recommend the exclusion of Maggie Chapman MSP from one meeting of the Equalities, Human Rights and Civil Justice Committee, and it is, I believe, a proportionate one. The committee has taken its role seriously, seeking to embed the principles of natural justice and fairness in its deliberations. For the reputation of the Parliament and the members of it, I urge those in the chamber to support the motion.
I move,
That the Parliament notes the Standards, Procedures and Public Appointments Committee’s 10th Report, 2023 (Session 6), Complaint against Maggie Chapman MSP (SP Paper 366), and agrees to impose the sanction recommended in the report that Maggie Chapman MSP be excluded from the first meeting of the Equalities, Human Rights and Civil Justice Committee that is held after this motion is agreed.
17:16