Hansard

Again, I am grateful to Mr Morgan for that suggestion, but he is wide of the mark. Only the slothful servant needs to be commanded in all things. I do not know how much detail he wanted, but page 26 of the consultation document spells out exactly what the proposed bandings are and page 27 explains what the consultation is about. I totally refute his suggestion that our proposal was unclear.

Mr Morgan is also rather wide of the mark in suggesting that the register will be available only in hard copy. Those who wish to do so will be able to consult a hard copy, but the register will also be put up on the web. If he is concerned about that and wants to offer an alternative, he might have an opportunity to do so when the Parliament revisits the issue at some point in future.

We do not suggest any change to the requirement on members to make a declaration of interests during interventions. Our suggestion is that the current practice should continue. Whether that is honoured or not is up to individual members.

In response to Donald Gorrie's reference to Calvinism, I accept that we may well have adopted a hair-shirt approach. However, the Parliament made a number of significant changes to the Interests of Members of the Scottish Parliament Bill that made it less of a hair shirt. Although Mr Morgan has advanced the argument that reducing the declarable amount for income from heritable property to zero will add to that hair-shirt approach, our aim has been to make matters open and transparent. We also want the requirements to reflect the provisions for remuneration.

I remind members of the overall aim of our work on replacing the members' interests order with a new act and with the determinations that are set out in the committee's reports. The main purpose of the register is to provide information on any financial interest or other material benefit that a member receives that might reasonably be thought by others to influence his or her actions, speeches or votes in the Parliament or other actions that might be taken in his or her capacity as a member of the Parliament.

The appearance of an entry in the register implies no element of judgment on the substance of the interest. The purpose of registration is to ensure openness by giving other members and the public the opportunity to know about interests that may be thought to influence a member's actions in his or her parliamentary capacity. Observers can make their own assessment of the significance of an entry. The rules on declaration of interests also place members under a more general obligation to keep the overall purpose of the register in mind.

Work on replacing the members' interest order has taken place over two parliamentary sessions. That work has been carried out in committee and in meetings of the full Parliament and is a matter of public record. I believe that the Scottish Parliament has set high ethical standards. That is what is needed. We need practical arrangements to ensure that those standards are reflected, and are seen to be reflected, in public life.