SPPA/S3/08/10/A STANDARDS, PROCEDURES AND PUBLIC APPOINTMENTS COMMITTEE AGENDA 10th Meeting, 2008 (Session 3) Tuesday 24 June 2008 The Committee will meet at 2.15 pm in Committee Room 5. 1. Cross-Party Groups: The Committee will consider applications for recognition from two proposed Cross-Party Groups. 2. Audit Committee – title and remit (in private): The Committee will consider a draft report. 3. Complaint (in private): The Committee will continue its initial consideration of a report from the Scottish Parliamentary Standards Commissioner. Gillian Baxendine Clerk to the Standards, Procedures and Public Appointments Committee Room TG.01 Ext 85177 [email protected] SPPA/S3/08/10/A The papers for this meeting are as follows: Agenda Item 1 Note by the Clerk SPPA/S3/08/10/1 Agenda Item 2 Draft report (PRIVATE) SPPA/S3/08/10/2 SPPA/S3/08/10/1 STANDARDS, PROCEDURES AND PUBLIC APPOINTMENTS COMMITTEE 10th Meeting, 2008 (Session 3) Tuesday 24 June 2008 Cross-Party Group Application Note by the Clerk Introduction 1. In accordance with the provisions on Cross-Party Groups set out in Section 6 of the Code of Conduct, proposals for the establishment of Cross-Party Groups (CPGs) in the Scottish Parliament must be submitted to the Standards, Procedures and Public Appointments Committee for its approval. 2. There are two proposed CPGs for the Committee’s consideration. Neither has been active in previous parliamentary sessions. 3. The Rules referred to in relation to each application are set out in section 6.3 of the Code of Conduct for MSPs (‘the Code’). Proposed CPG on Skills 4. The registration form submitted by the proposed CPG is attached as annexe A to this note. Purpose 5. Rule 1 states that a Cross-Party Group “must be Parliamentary in character, and its purpose must be of genuine public interest”. The proposed group has registered its purpose as: “The Group’s main aim is to bring together a wide range of organisations and individuals involved in skills development in Scotland to discuss and share ways in which skills development can be enhanced to bring sustainable economic benefits.” Membership and Office Bearers 6. Rule 2 requires a minimum of 5 MSP members of a CPG and of these at least one member must be from each of the parties or groups represented on the Parliamentary Bureau. 7. The MSP membership (by party) of the proposed CPG is as follows: • 2 Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party • 5 Scottish Labour Party • 1 Scottish Liberal Democrat • 1 Scottish National Party. 8. The proposed group meets the requirement of Rule 2 in relation to office bearers. John Park MSP and Gavin Brown MSP are Co-Conveners, and Chris Harvie MSP is Vice-Convener. Subscription and Financial Benefits 9. The proposed Group has declared a total of £659.10 worth of financial or other benefits received from the Chartered Institute of Bankers in Scotland. The benefits declared relate to: i) secretariat support in establishing the proposed Group; and ii) provision of refreshments at the proposed Group’s inaugural meeting. 10. The registration form indicates that the proposed CPG does not charge a subscription for members. Proposed CPG on Racial Equality in Scotland 11. The registration form submitted by the proposed CPG is attached as annexe B to this note. Purpose 12. Rule 1 states that a Cross-Party Group “must be Parliamentary in character, and its purpose must be of genuine public interest”. The proposed group has registered its purpose as: “To provide a forum for issues relating to race and anti racism and to seek solutions to the discrimination faced by Scotland’s Black/Minority Ethnic communities. To work through cross party dialogue in promoting the role played by Scotland’s civic society, Parliament and Government in actively building a Scotland free from racism. The Group will seek to identify and address racism across society, including through learning from the experiences of BME groups.” Membership and Office Bearers 13. Rule 2 requires a minimum of 5 MSP members of a CPG and of these at least one member must be from each of the parties or groups represented on the Parliamentary Bureau. 14. The MSP membership (by party) of the proposed CPG is as follows: • 1 Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party • 1 Scottish Green Party • 5 Scottish Labour Party • 1 Scottish Liberal Democrat • 7 Scottish National Party. 15. The proposed group meets the requirement of Rule 2 in relation to office bearers. Bob Doris MSP is Convener; Bashir Ahmad MSP, Frank McAveety MSP and Jamie McGrigor MSP are Vice-Conveners. Subscription and Financial Benefits 16. The registration form indicates that the proposed CPG has yet to agree whether to have a group subscription charge and what, if any, that charge may be. 17. The proposed group has indicated its intention to have an individual from an outside organisation issued with a parliamentary pass. The individual will be the group secretary. 18. The proposed group has not declared the value of the provision of the secretarial support in section 5 of the registration form. The Committee may wish to seek clarification on the precise role, remit and value of the secretarial support and that the individual will have a parliamentary pass for the purposes of directly supporting the group. Recommendation 19. The Committee is invited to consider whether to accord recognition to the following proposed Cross-Party Groups in the Scottish Parliament: • Skills • Racial Equality in Scotland ANNEXE A CROSS-PARTY GROUPS IN THE SCOTTISH PARLIAMENT REGISTRATION FORM 1. GROUP NAME Code of Conduct 6.2.2 Groups that have undertaken to comply with the rules on Cross-Party Groups may use the words Cross-Party Group in the Scottish Parliament in their title. Cross-Party Group in the Scottish Parliament on Skills 2. GROUP PURPOSE Code of Conduct 6.2.4 and 6.3, Rule 1 A brief statement of the main purpose of the group. Groups are reminded that the Standards Committee will look very carefully at the proposed purpose of a group to satisfy itself that its purpose is Parliamentary in nature and of genuine public interest. The Group’s main aim is to bring together a wide range of organisations and individuals involved in skills development in Scotland to discuss and share ways in which skills development can be enhanced to bring sustainable economic benefits. 3. GROUP MEMBERS Code of Conduct 6.3, Rules 2, 3, 8, 9 & 10 When listing members, who are MSPs, only the MSP’s name need be given. For members from outwith the Parliament, the name of the member and any employer they represent must be given. MSPs Non-MSP Individuals Rhona Brankin, Bill Butler, Gavin Brown, John Lamont, Elaine Murray, John Park, Liam McArthur, Chris Harvie, Lewis Organisations MacDonald Alliance of Sector Skills Council Scotland, Association of Scotland Colleges, Bio- Industry Association Scotland, CBI Scotland, Chartered Institute of Bankers in Scotland, Construction Skills Scotland, Economic Development Association [Scotland], Institute of Chartered Accountants of Scotland, Law Society of Scotland, Learning Teaching Scotland, Lifelong Learning UK, Oil & Gas Academy [OPITO], ScotlandIS, SCDI, Scottish Food & Drink, SCQF, Scottish Renewables, Scottish Screen, Skills Development Scotland, Society of British Aerospace Companies [Scotland], SQA, STUC, Universities Scotland, NFU 4. GROUP OFFICERS Code of Conduct 6.3, Rule 4 Please amend titles as necessary e.g. to indicate joint office holders, or preferred titles. Co-Convener John Park MSP, Gavin Brown MSP Vice-Convener Chris Harvie MSP Secretary Shona Downie, Chartered Institute of Bankers in Scotland 5. FINANCIAL OR OTHER BENEFITS RECEIVED Code of Conduct 6.4.6 The group must register any financial or other material benefit received by the group from whatever source, where the value of the financial sum or benefit from any single source exceeds £250 in any one calendar year. This includes donations, sponsorship, subscriptions, hospitality, gifts, visits, provision of services or accommodation or staff assistance. The value of use of Parliamentary facilities need not be registered. The details requiring to be registered include a brief description of the benefit, the approximate monetary value, the date on which it was received and the source from which it came. Where a consultancy organisation provides benefits, the client on whose behalf these are provided should be named. Date Amount Description April-May £616 Secretariat support provided by the Chartered Institute 2008 of Bankers in Scotland in establishing the proposed Group. th 14P P May £43.10 Teas, Coffees and refreshments at inaugural meeting sponsored by the Chartered Institute of Bankers in Scotland 6. GROUP SUBSCRIPTION Code of Conduct 6.3, Rule 7 Where a group charges or proposes to charge a subscription, this must be reasonable and the same for all members. The amount of the subscription should be registered and the purposes for which it is intended to use the subscription. Amount per group member per year n/a 7. GROUP STAFF AS PARLIAMENTARY PASS HOLDERS If a group makes use of staff issued with a Parliamentary pass, any paid activity undertaken by those staff where the employer benefits from the pass holder’s access to the Parliament must be registered. There is no need to state the amount of remuneration. The requirement relates both to staff employed directly by the group and to staff employed by an outside organisation to provide assistance to the group. Staff name Title of post Name and address of employer organisation Type of employer organisation 8. GROUP CONTACT Code of Conduct 6.4.4 and 6.5.1 – 6.5.5 Please give the full details of an elected official of the group who is an MSP who will be the contact for registration matters for the group.