OVERSEAS PARLIAMENTARY NEWS July 2018

Parliamentary Library Research Paper

A summary of news from overseas parliaments

Australia

Auditor-General not bound by budget secrecy in briefing Joint Committee

The Joint Public Accounts and Audit Committee has a statutory duty to consider the draft estimates for the Audit Office and to make recommendations on them to Parliament. In May the deputy chair of the Committee told the House of Representatives that when the Committee endorsed the Office’s proposed 2018-19 budget it had been unaware that the appropriation bills would contain further reductions. The Auditor-General had been refused permission by the Treasurer to brief the Committee on the reductions and their impact due to budget secrecy rules. The Auditor-General has since been advised by the Australian Government Solicitor that he has a statutory duty to respond to a request from the Committee to disclose information about the Office’s pre-budget estimates, and that there is no real room for executive discretion based on conventions around pre-budget confidentiality.

Letter: [From the Auditor-General to the Public Governance, Performance and Accountability Act Review], 29 June 2018 https://www.finance.gov.au/sites/all/themes/pgpa_independent_review/draft-submissions/anao.pdf Hansard: Personal explanations, House of Representatives Hansard, 21 May 2018 http://parlinfo.aph.gov.au/parlInfo/download/chamber/hansardr/8ba325d4-4d2d-4a31-91b3- a83165c5a782/toc_pdf/House%20of%20Representatives_2018_05_21_6162.pdf;fileType=application%2Fpdf Media article: Auditor-general Grant Hehir defends his independence from ministerial direction, The Mandarin, 16 July 2018 https://www.themandarin.com.au/95856-auditor-general-grant-hehir-defends-his-independence-from-ministerial- direction/

European Parliament

Member’s behaviour towards assistant constituted psychological harassment

Parliament erred, the General Court ruled, when it concluded that an MEP’s behaviour towards her parliamentary assistant was not improper. Following the termination of her employment contract, the assistant had claimed that she had been subjected to inappropriate behaviour by the MEP consisting of disdain, humiliating and scornful language, threats, insults and screams. In rejecting the complaint, Parliament’s Secretary-General had stated that the events had occurred against a background of great tension between the MEP and her assistant, and that although the use of harsh language was deplorable, it was sometimes difficult to refrain from using such language in a stressful political environment. The Court said that the assistant was entitled to work under conditions that respected her health and dignity, and that even though the particular circumstances might have justified disciplinary measures or dismissal, the MEP was not justified in behaving in such an improper, repetitive and intentional manner towards the assistant.

Judgment: General Court of the European Union, Curto/Parliament (Case T-275/17), 13 July 2018 http://curia.europa.eu/juris/document/document.jsf;jsessionid=9ea7d2dc30dd65d44d38013d411584c8d47d3273cfbb.e 34KaxiLc3qMb40Rch0SaxyOah50?text=&docid=204009&pageIndex=0&doclang=en&mode=req&dir=&occ=first&part= 1&cid=1356415 Press release: The General Court orders the European Parliament and the EIB to each pay €10 000 in damages to members of staff who have suffered psychological harassment, 13 July 2018 https://curia.europa.eu/jcms/upload/docs/application/pdf/2018-07/cp180109en.pdf

OverseasImmigration Parliamentary chronology: News selected events 1 840 - 2017 27 February 2017 July 2018 1 1

France

Tax irregularities lead to declaration of member’s resignation

Within one month of taking office, a deputy receives from the tax administration an assessment of their compliance with their tax obligations. A deputy who has not complied with their obligations has one month in which to do so, or to contest the assessment, after which the assessment is forwarded to the Bureau of the National Assembly. In cases where a deputy has neither complied with their obligations nor contested the assessment, the Bureau refers the matter to the Constitutional Council. Depending on the seriousness of the case, the Council can require the deputy’s resignation and disqualify them from all elections for up to three years. A deputy who had partially regularised his tax situation within the one month allowed and fully regularised it afterwards was nevertheless declared by the Council to have resigned his office and to be ineligible to stand for election for three years. In making its decision the Council took into account the length of time for which the sums had been owed and their size.

Decision: Le Conseil constitutionnel, Décision no 2018-1 OF du 6 juillet 2018 (Situation de M. Thierry Robert au regard du respect de ses obligations fiscales) https://www.conseil-constitutionnel.fr/decision/2018/20181OF.htm

Reform of National Assembly administration

To maintain high standards of service, and taking into account the Assembly’s new needs and those of deputies and staff, the reform of the National Assembly’s administration must pursue four objectives. To meet the needs of deputies, the administration must take on new functions and reorganise those that have become less essential. Flexibility and movement between jobs, internally and externally, should be encouraged to increase the career depth of Assembly staff and the diversity of their skills. Conditions for staff should more nearly match those of the rest of the public service, while taking account of the unique characteristics of the Assembly’s work and the constraints inherent in providing a service for deputies. To strengthen Parliament, the collective staff resources available to deputies, particularly for exercising their scrutiny role, must be increased, subject to the Assembly’s financial means.

Minutes: Bureau de l’Assemblée nationale, Réunion du mercredi 11 juilllet 2018 http://www2.assemblee- nationale.fr/15/le-bureau-de-l-assemblee-nationale/comptes-rendus-et-convocation/2018/reunion-du-mercredi-11- juillet-2018

Ireland

Former members have right to privacy over written off debts

In response to an information request the Houses of the Oireachtas Service released the amounts of the former members’ bar and restaurant debts that were written off in 2017, but not the former members’ names, on the grounds that it was personal information. The applicant appealed the response, arguing that the provision of a credit facility at the Oireachtas’ bars and restaurants had arisen because of the former members’ status and there was a public interest in ensuring accountability for the use of public funds. The Office of the Information Commissioner upheld the Service’s decision. The debts had been incurred by the former members in a private capacity and while the disclosure of their names might satisfy public curiosity, the public interest in doing so did not outweigh their right to privacy. The public interest in enhancing transparency and accountability had been served to some degree by the release of the amounts owed and the disclosure of the details surrounding the circumstances in which the debts had been written off.

Decision: Office of the Information Commissioner, Mr X and the Houses of the Oireachtas Service (FOI Act 2014), 11 July 2018 https://www.oic.ie/decisions/mr-x-and-houses-of-the-oi/index.xml

Overseas Parliamentary News July 2018 2

New language scheme published

Key commitments in the Houses of the Oireachtas new language scheme include the availability in both Irish and English of tours of Leinster House, and of lesson plans developed by the Education Officer for schools. All static material on the Oireachtas website will be bilingual. There will be access to simultaneous translation technology in all four committee rooms. The new language scheme will run in parallel with the Houses of the Oireachtas Service Irish language strategy, which aims to facilitate members and staff engaging with the Irish language in a positive and rewarding manner, and to provide opportunities for all to use and enjoy the language, regardless of their level of competency.

Report: Houses of the Oireachtas Service language scheme 2018, 26 July 2018 https://data.oireachtas.ie/ie/oireachtas/corporate/other/2018/2018-07-25_language-scheme_en.pdf Press release: Houses of Oireachtas publishes 2018 Language Scheme, 26 July 2018 https://www.oireachtas.ie/en/press-centre/press-releases/20180726-houses-of-oireachtas-publishes-2018-language- scheme/

New South Wales

Legislative Council name change not recommended

A Legislative Council committee recommended that the Legislative Council not proceed with a member’s bill which proposed that the Council could also be called the State Senate and that Council members could also be called state senators. Supporters of the bill had argued that the terms state senate and state senator better conveyed the role of the Council and its members both in an international context and in contemporary society. Arguments against the bill had included that there were more significant matters for the Council to consider than its name, that it was unclear how the bill would improve the Council’s work or help the people of New South Wales, and that optional use of the term state senator would lead to confusion. The committee found that there was no real public support for the bill to proceed to legislation.

Report: Legislative Council Select Committee on the State Senate Bill 2015, State Senate Bill 2015, 4 July 2018 https://www.parliament.nsw.gov.au/lcdocs/inquiries/2473/4%20July%202018%20-%20Report%20- %20State%20Senate%20Bill%202015.pdf

Papua New Guinea

Former opposition members explain switch to government

Three members who switched their allegiance from opposition parties to the governing People’s National Congress Party gave their reasons for doing so. One of the three, who is also the governor of a province, said that he had made the move to develop the resources in his province, for which he needed the government’s support. Another said that his vision was to alleviate poverty and to do that he had to align himself with the government. He had consulted his people and they had told him to move to the government. The third said that he had joined the government to ensure that his district received adequate funding for major projects. A member who remains with the opposition, and is also a provincial governor, questioned the perception that members have to be in government to get things done. He said that by and large government members do not get preferential treatment, and that all members are entitled to receive development funds. Opposition members can always go to court to get payment of the funds enforced.

Media articles: We did it for our people, say MPs who switched, The National, 17 July 2018 https://www.thenational.com.pg/we-did-it-for-our-people-say-mps-who-switched/; Two opposition MPs in PNG join the government, Radio New Zealand, 17 July 2018 https://www.radionz.co.nz/international/pacific-news/361976/two- opposition-mps-in-png-join-the-government; PNG governor questions rationale behind MP defections, Radio New Zealand, 26 July 2018 https://www.radionz.co.nz/international/programmes/datelinepacific/audio/2018655345/png- governor-questions-rationale-behind-mp-defections

Overseas Parliamentary News July 2018 3

Queensland

Criminal history checks for members’ and parliamentary staff

Proposed amendments to the Ministerial and Other Office Holder Staff Act 2010 and the Parliamentary Service Act 1988 provide for criminal history checks to be conducted for members’ and Parliamentary Service staff. Under the second act the Clerk will have the power to conduct such checks to assess the suitability of a person to be engaged in the Parliamentary Service or in members’ electorate offices. Under the first act the Director-General of the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet will have the same power for a person to be engaged in the Office of the Leader of the Opposition or in the office of the leader of any other political party not in government, or of an independent member. The statutory power will replace interim administrative arrangements introduced in 2017 after it was discovered that a person with previous convictions had been employed by the Parliamentary Service. The Economics and Governance Committee has recommended that the amendment bill be passed.

Report: Economics and Governance Committee, Ministerial and Other Office Holder Staff and Other Legislation Amendment Bill 2018, 5 July 2018 http://www.parliament.qld.gov.au/documents/tableOffice/TabledPapers/2018/5618T941.pdf

United Kingdom

Regulatory system for members’ outside interests proposed

A majority of MPs do not hold remunerated outside interests, the Committee on Standards in Public Life says, and a number hold outside interests within reasonable limits, but a small number have taken up outside interests beyond what can be considered reasonable. It notes that while outside interests can enable MPs to remain in touch with the world outside Parliament, and provide a degree of security for some, there may be cases where they can lead to undue influence on the political system. Rather than imposing financial or time limits on MPs’ outside interests, the Committee proposes a regulatory system based on the principle that any outside roles, paid or unpaid, undertaken by MPs should not prevent them from fully undertaking the range of duties expected of them in their primary role as an MP. Any breach of this principle should be investigated by the Independent Parliamentary Commissioner for Standards, with the possibility of sanctions being recommended by the House of Commons Committee on Standards.

Report: Committee on Standards in Public Life, MPs’ outside interests, 3 July 2018 https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/721697/CSPL_MPs __outside_interests_-_full_report.PDF

Parliamentary behaviour code endorsed

The House of Commons voted to endorse a Parliamentary Behaviour Code setting out principles of respect, professionalism, understanding others’ perspectives, courtesy and acceptance of responsibility that must be observed by everyone visiting or working in Parliament. The Code is underpinned by an independent complaints and grievance policy and scheme that apply to all acts of workplace bullying and harassment by and against any member of the parliamentary community, including members’ staff in constituency offices. The scheme provides for support mechanisms, independent investigation of complaints, and remedies or sanctions. Training will be available to all, including workshops on management practice for members.

Hansard: Independent complaints and grievance policy, House of Commons Hansard, 19 July 2018 https://hansard.parliament.uk/commons/2018-07-19/debates/92FF5EA2-68E1-46B5-AC76- B3392609DA66/IndependentComplaintsAndGrievancePolicy Reports: House of Commons Committee on Standards, Independent complaints and grievance policy: implementation, HC 1396, 13 July 2018 https://publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm201719/cmselect/cmstandards/1396/1396.pdf; Independent Complaints and Grievance Policy Programme Team, Independent complaints and grievance scheme delivery report, 17 July 2018 https://www.parliament.uk/documents/news/2018/1%20ICGP%20Delivery%20Report.pdf

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Member subject to recall petition following suspension for 30 sitting days

A recommendation by the House of Commons Committee on Standards that a member be suspended for 30 sitting days, and his salary withdrawn for 30 days, was approved by the House. The member had failed to register two visits he had made to Sri Lanka with members of his family in 2013 that were paid for by the Sri Lankan government. The monetary value of the visits greatly exceeded the then registration threshold of £660. The member had also breached the rule against paid advocacy by writing to the Prime Minister seeking a benefit for the Sri Lankan government, in relation to a United Nations resolution, without declaring the hospitality he had received. The Speaker notified the House that under the Recall of MPs Act 2015 he was required to inform the relevant electoral officer that the MP, having been suspended for a period of more than 10 sitting days on the recommendation of the Committee on Standards, had met one of the Act’s conditions for a recall petition.

Hansard: Standards, House of Commons Hansard, 24 July 2018 https://hansard.parliament.uk/commons/2018-07- 24/debates/5AD76860-569B-4586-A925-D407CD388164/Standards Report: House of Commons Committee on Standards, Ian Paisley, HC 1397, 18 July 2018 https://publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm201719/cmselect/cmstandards/1397/1397.pdf

Vanuatu

Convicted member must vacate seat

The Court of Appeal upheld the Supreme Court’s ruling that the Deputy Prime Minister’s seat in Parliament had become vacant. The Deputy Prime Minister had earlier been convicted on two charges of perverting the course of justice and had received a two-year suspended prison sentence. The Speaker had then written to him informing him that his seat had become vacant, in accordance with the Members of Parliament (Vacation of Seats) Act, which provides that the seat of a member who has been convicted and sentenced to imprisonment for a term of not less than two years becomes vacant after 30 days. The Court of Appeal confirmed that a suspended prison sentence is and remains an imprisonment sentence, and that a term of not less than two years does not mean a term exceeding two years.

Judgment: Court of Appeal, Natuman v Saemon, 20 July 2018 https://judiciary.gov.vu/court-activity/judgments/173144- natuman-v-saemon

Wales

Recommendations to increase diversity of Assembly’s membership

Research commissioned by the Remuneration Board of the National Assembly led to a number of recommendations relating to aspects of the members’ remuneration package that deter a diverse range of people from standing for election to the Assembly, or that might provide incentives for them to do so. They included aligning childcare provisions with Assembly sittings and members’ schedules, and reviewing the exceptional expenses rules, e.g. support for people with a disability. The Board should raise for consideration by the Assembly Commission the appropriateness of provisions around flexible working, including remote voting, as well as other ways in which technology could facilitate members’ work, and the merits of job shares or second jobs for members. The Board should also consider the possibility of allowances for members to support shadowing opportunities and work experience for constituents.

Report: Wales Governance Centre, Unpacking diversity: barriers and incentives to standing for election to the National Assembly for Wales, 5 July 2018 http://senedd.assembly.wales/documents/s77244/Unpacking%20Diversity.pdf

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Member suspended for code of conduct breach

A member was convicted of failing to provide a sample of breath for analysis when required to do so by a police officer. The Standards of Conduct Committee found that the member had breached the Code of Conduct’s requirement that members should at all times conduct themselves in a manner which will tend to maintain and strengthen public trust and confidence in the Assembly’s integrity and refrain from any action that would bring the Assembly or its members into disrepute. The Committee recommended that the member should be excluded from Assembly proceedings for fourteen calendar days.

Report: Standards of Conduct Committee, Report 02-18 to the Assembly under Standing Order 22.9, 9 July 2018 http://www.assembly.wales/laid%20documents/cr-ld11651/cr-ld11651-e.pdf

Committee conducts pre-budget public consultation

Ahead of the publication of the Welsh Government’s draft budget for 2019-20 in October, the Finance Committee has initiated a consultation to explore people’s expectations of the budget, including financial readiness for the 2019-20 financial year, and the impact of the 2018-19 budget. In addition to these general questions, the consultation also asks for comments on a number of specific areas. These include policies to promote economic growth, reduce poverty, gender inequality and mitigate welfare reform; sustainability of public services, innovation and service transformation; and approach to preventative spending and how this is represented in resource allocation.

Letter: A call for information – Welsh Government draft budget proposals for 2019-20, 16 July 2018 http://senedd.assembly.wales/documents/s77534/Consultation%20letter.html?CT=2 Press release: Assembly committee opens public consultation on Welsh Government draft budget, 16 July 2018 http://www.assembly.wales/en/newhome/pages/newsitem.aspx?itemid=1884&assembly=5

Pleasance Purser Research Analyst Parliamentary Library

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