SOC(3)SC-E005 - Standards, Procedures and Public Appointments Committee (Scottish Parliament)
Standards, Procedures and Public Appointments Committee
Lara Date
Committee Service
National Assembly for Wales, Cardiff Bay, CF99 1NA.
c/o Clerk to the Committee
Room TG.01
Edinburgh
EH99 1SP
Tel (clerk): 0131 348 5239
(RNID Typetalk calls welcome)
Fax: 0131 348 5088
e-mail: sppa.committee@scottish.parliament.uk
4 July 2008
Dear Lara
Public Consultation: Assembly Measure To Establish A Statutory Role Of Commissioner For Standards – Invitation To Respond
I refer to the letter dated 6 June 2008 in which the Standards, Procedures and Public Appointments (SPPA) Committee is invited to submit evidence to the National Assembly of Wales’ Committee on Standards of Conduct public consultation.
As you will be aware the Scottish Parliament established the role of an independent Standards Commissioner when it passed the Scottish Parliamentary Standards Commissioner Act 2002.
The Bill was developed from the previous Standards Committee's conclusion that the Parliament should have statutory procedures for the independent investigation of complaints made under the Members' Interests Order (now superseded by the Interests of Members of the Scottish Parliament Act 2006) and the Code of Conduct. The creation of the office of a Standards Commissioner and the arrangements for investigating complaints replaced the temporary investigation provisions set out in an earlier edition of the Code of Conduct.
Whilst the SPPA Committee feels that it may be inappropriate to comment on the policy matters that the Wales’ Committee on Standards of Conduct is currently considering, it did feel that the content of previous Scottish Parliament discussions in the context of the Standards Commissioner’s Act may be of some interest to you. As this information in published on the Committee’s website I have attached the appropriate web links below.
The Committee’s 2nd Report 2001 into the Proposal for a Standards Commissioner Committee Bill is available at:
http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/business/committees/historic/standards/reports-01/str01-02-01.htm
Also available is a Scottish Parliament Information Centre briefing (02/26) on the Bill:
http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/business/research/pdf_res_brief/sb02-26.pdf
An ad-hoc Committee was established to consider the Bill at Stage 2 and the details of its consideration can be found at the following weblink:
http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/business/committees/historic/adhoc1/papers2002.htm
Finally the Bill was passed by the Parliament on 27 June 2002 and the official report of this meeting can be found at:
http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/business/officialReports/meetingsParliament/or-02/sor0627-01.htm
Yours sincerely
Keith Brown MSP
Convener
Standards, Procedures and Public Appointments Committee
