House of Commons Committee on Standards and Privileges Complaints about alleged misuse of Parliamentary dining facilities Third Report of Session 2006–07 HC 431 House of Commons Committee on Standards and Privileges Complaints about alleged misuse of Parliamentary dining facilities Third Report of Session 2006–07 Report and Appendices, together with formal minutes Ordered by The House of Commons to be printed 27 March 2007 HC 431 Published on 29 March 2007 by authority of the House of Commons London: The Stationery Office Limited £0.00 Committee on Standards and Privileges The Committee on Standards and Privileges is appointed by the House of Commons to oversee the work of the Parliamentary Commissioner for Standards; to examine the arrangements proposed by the Commissioner for the compilation, maintenance and accessibility of the Register of Members’ Interests and any other registers of interest established by the House; to review from time to time the form and content of those registers; to consider any specific complaints made in relation to the registering or declaring of interests referred to it by the Commissioner; to consider any matter relating to the conduct of Members, including specific complaints in relation to alleged breaches in the Code of Conduct which have been drawn to the Committee’s attention by the Commissioner; and to recommend any modifications to the Code of Conduct as may from time to time appear to be necessary. Current membership Rt Hon Sir George Young Bt MP (Conservative, North West Hampshire) (Chairman) Rt Hon Kevin Barron MP (Labour, Rother Valley) Rt Hon David Curry MP (Conservative, Skipton and Ripon) Mr Andrew Dismore MP (Labour, Hendon) Nick Harvey MP (Liberal Democrat, North Devon) Mr Brian Jenkins MP (Labour, Tamworth) Mr Elfyn Llwyd MP (Plaid Cymru, Meirionnydd Nant Conwy) Mr Chris Mullin MP (Labour, Sunderland South) The Hon Nicholas Soames MP (Conservative, Mid Sussex) Dr Alan Whitehead MP (Labour, Southampton Test) Powers The constitution and powers of the Committee are set out in Standing Order No. 149. In particular, the Committee has power to order the attendance of any Member of Parliament before the committee and to require that specific documents or records in the possession of a Member relating to its inquiries, or to the inquiries of the Commissioner, be laid before the Committee. The Committee has power to refuse to allow its public proceedings to be broadcast. The Law Officers, if they are Members of Parliament, may attend and take part in the Committee’s proceedings, but may not vote. Publications The Reports and evidence of the Committee are published by The Stationery Office by Order of the House. All publications of the Committee (including press notices) are on the Internet at: www.parliament.uk/sandp. A list of Reports of the Committee in the present Parliament is at the back of this volume. Committee staff The current staff of the Committee are Dr Christopher Ward (Clerk), Dr Susan Griffiths (Second Clerk) and Miss Michelle Owens (Secretary). Contacts All correspondence should be addressed to The Clerk of the Committee on Standards and Privileges, Journal Office, House of Commons, London SW1A 0AA, or by e-mail to [email protected]. The telephone number for general enquiries is 020 7219 6615. Complaints about alleged misuse of Parliamentary dining facilities 1 Contents Report Page Complaints about alleged misuse of Parliamentary dining facilities 3 Introduction 3 The Issues 3 Visits 5 Other matters 5 Appendix 1: Memorandum from the Parliamentary Commissioner for Standards 7 Appendix 2: Note by the Parliamentary Commissioner for Standards, January 2007134 Complaint by Mr John Mann and Mr Kevan Jones in relation to Rt Hon Sir George Young 134 Introduction 134 The Complaint 134 Relevant Provisions of the House’s Code of Conduct and Rules 135 My Inquiries 135 Evaluation 136 Conclusion 136 Annex C: Letter from the Parliamentary Commissioner to Sir George Young, 7 December 2006 138 Annex D: letter from Sir George Young to the Parliamentary Commissioner, 11 December 2006 140 Complaint by John Mann & Kevan Jones 140 Appendix 3: Letter to the Clerk of the Committee from the Hon Bernard Jenkin MP, 26 March 2007 141 Complaints about misuse of Parliamentary Dining Facilites: Comments on Memorandum submitted by the Parliamentary Commissioner for Standards 141 Appendix 4: Letter to the Clerk of the Committee from Mr John Mann and Mr Kevan Jones, 26 March 2007 143 Formal minutes 144 Reports from the Committee on Standards and Privileges in the current Parliament 146 Complaints about alleged misuse of Parliamentary dining facilities 3 Complaints about alleged misuse of Parliamentary dining facilities Introduction 1. We have considered a memorandum by the Parliamentary Commissioner for Standards relating to complaints by Mr John Mann, Member for Bassetlaw, and Mr Kevan Jones, Member for North Durham, concerning a number of specific cases of alleged misuse of dining facilities. The Commissioner’s memorandum is reproduced at Appendix 1. In all, 26 Members are the subject of their complaints, and other issues they have raised.1 We are most grateful to the Commissioner for his extensive and thorough examination of these matters. 2. The Commissioner has himself dismissed the complaints against 14 Members, the reasons for which, in 13 cases, are set out in his memorandum.2 The fourteenth case involved our Chairman, and this was disposed of separately by the Commissioner as it was the sole case relating to the previous Banqueting Regulations.3 We reproduce at Appendix 2 the text of the Commissioner’s memorandum setting out his reasons.4 3. In accordance with our usual practice, we have shown copies of the Commissioner’s memorandum to each of the Members complained against. One Member chose to make a written submission to us, and this is reproduced at Appendix 3. We have also shown to Mr Mann and Mr Jones those sections of the Commissioner’s memorandum which refer to them, and their comments are reproduced at Appendix 4. The Issues 4. All the functions which are the subject of complaint are political in nature. This is, however, not the point at issue: the House’s Banqueting Regulations laid down by Mr Speaker following advice from the Administration Committee, which set out the rules for the use by Members of the private dining facilities, explicitly permit use of the facilities for “political functions”, subject only to all relevant declarations of interest.5 There is no complaint in any of these cases of any failure by the Members concerned in the latter respect. 5. As the Commissioner points out, at the heart of the complaint of Mr Mann and Mr Jones lies the interpretation of two specific provisions of the Banqueting Regulations.6 In summary, it is their contention that events sponsored by Members complained against 1 For a full list of the Members involved, see Annex 1 to Appendix 1, p. 63. 2 Appendix 1, paras 155 to 158. 3 EV 4, p. 70. These Regulations were superseded by the Banqueting Regulations with effect from 13 December 2000. 4 Appendix 2, p. 134. See also Appendix 1, paras 32 to 34, and the Minutes of the Committee of Tuesday 23 January 2007, the relevant extract from which is reproduced at p 144. 5 Regulation 5.5. 6 Appendix 1, para 13. The current Banqueting Regulations are reproduced in full at EV. 3, p. 66. 4 Complaints about alleged misuse of Parliamentary dining facilities have in effect led to direct financial or material gain by a political party benefiting from donations made by the body arranging the function, which would be a breach of paragraph 5.1. They also contend that some of these bodies have used the promise of functions in the House as an inducement to recruit new members, which would be a breach of paragraph 5.3. 6. A breach of either provision would be a breach of paragraph 14 of the Code of Conduct.7 All the Members complained against maintain that the functions, and the organisations concerned, have acted in a manner fully consistent with the requirements of the Banqueting Regulations. 7. The Commissioner has reported to us on ten complaints involving individual Members, and one against the activities of the United and Cecil Club, the Chairman of which is a Member of this House. In each case, the Commissioner has concluded that it would be unwise and unjust to find the individual Members concerned in breach of the Code.8 8. The Commissioner gives three principal reasons for that decision: • there appears on the evidence before him to be no commonly agreed interpretation of the key provisions of the Banqueting Regulations; • the cases which are the subject of complaint appear to reflect established common practice on the part of many Members, acting in good faith in accordance with what they understand to be the accepted practice of the House; and • the practices complained of appear to have gone unchallenged for many years, and certainly pre-date the most recent revision of the Banqueting Regulations in 2000.9 9. We agree with the Commissioner on the relevance of each of those three points. We also agree that it would not be right to single out any individual Members concerned for action by the House. However, we are strongly of the view that practice generally in respect of use of the private dining facilities of the House by organisations raising funds for political parties has given the impression that House facilities have been used improperly for party fund-raising, and is in need of reform, as the Commissioner suggests in paragraph 174 of his memorandum. As Mr Mann and Mr Jones have demonstrated, some of the functions in respect of which the Commissioner has reported to us are likely to have breached, either in letter or spirit, the current provisions of the Banqueting Regulations.