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Report on the Investigation Into Allegations Made in the BBC

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Report on the Investigation Into Allegations Made in the BBC Committee on Standards and Privileges Report on the investigation into allegations made in the BBC Spotlight Programme broadcast on 7 January 2010 Together with the Report of the Assembly Commissioner for Standards, other evidence considered by the Committee and the Minutes of Proceedings of the Committee Ordered by The Committee on Standards and Privileges to be printed on 26th November 2014 This report is the property of the Committee on Standards and Privileges. Neither the report nor its contents should be disclosed to any person unless such disclosure is authorised by the Committee. THE REPORT REMAINS EMBARGOED UNTIL 12:00 NOON ON FRIDAY, 28TH NOVEMBER 2014 Mandate 2011/16 Thirteenth Report - NIA 191/11-16 Committee Powers and Membership Committee Powers and Membership 1. The Committee on Standards and Privileges is a Standing Committee of the Northern Ireland Assembly established in accordance with paragraph 10 of Strand One of the Belfast Agreement and under Assembly Standing Order Nos. 51 and 57. 2. The Committee has power: ■ to consider specific matters relating to privilege referred to it by the Assembly; ■ to oversee the work of the Assembly Clerk of Standards; ■ to examine the arrangement for the compilation, maintenance and accessibility of the Register of Members’ Interests and any other registers of interest established by the Assembly, and 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; ■ to consider any matter relating to the conduct of Members; ■ to recommend any modifications to any Assembly code of conduct as may from time to time appear to be necessary. 3. The Committee is appointed at the start of every Assembly, and has power to send for persons, papers and records that are relevant to its enquiries. 4. The membership of the Committee is as follows: Mr Alastair Ross (Chairperson) Ms Anna Lo (Deputy Chairperson) 1 Mr Steven Agnew Mr Cathal Boylan Mr Colum Eastwood 2 Ms David Hilditch 3 4 Mr Declan McAleer 5 6 7 8 Mr Fra McCann Mr Ian McCrea 9 Mr Robin Newton 10 11 12 Mrs Sandra Overend 13 1 With effect from 01 October 2013 Ms Anna Lo replaced Mr Kieran McCarthy. 2 With effect from 23 April 2012 Mr Colum Eastwood replaced Mr Patsy McGlone. 3 With effect from 15 April 2013 Ms Paula Bradley replaced Mr Jonathan Craig. 4 With effect from 6 October 2014 Mr David Hilditch replaced Ms Paula Bradley. 5 With effect from 3 July 2012 Mr Alex Maskey replaced Mr Pat Doherty. 6 With effect from 7 September 2012 Mr Francie Molloy replaced Mr Alex Maskey. 7 With effect from 7 April 2013 Mr Francie Malloy resigned as a Member. 8 With effect from 15 April 2013 Mr Declan McAleer replaced Mr Francie Malloy. 9 With effect from 3 December 2012 Mr Ian McCrea replaced Ms Paula Bradley. 10 With effect from 07 May 2013 Mr Sydney Anderson replaced Mr David McIlveen. 11 With effect from 16 September 2013 Mr Mervyn Storey replaced Mr Sydney Anderson. 12 With effect from 6 October 2014 Mr Robin Newton replaced Mr Mervyn Storey. 13 With effect from 26 September 2011 Mrs Sandra Overend replaced Mr Michael Copeland. i Report on the investigation into allegations made in the BBC Spotlight Programme broadcast on 7 January 2010 5. The Report and evidence of the Committee are published by the Stationery Office by order of the Committee. All publications of the Committee are posted on the Assembly’s website: (www.niassembly.gov.uk.) 6. All correspondence should be addressed to the Clerk to the Committee on Standards and Privileges, Committee Office, Northern Ireland Assembly, Room 254, Parliament Buildings, Stormont, Belfast BT4 3XX. Tel: 02890 520333; e-mail: committee.standards&privileges@ niassembly.gov.uk ii Table of Contents Table of Contents Report 1 Appendix 1 Report by the Northern Ireland Assembly Commissioner for Standards 1 15 Appendix 2 Other evidence considered by the Committee Correspondence dated 1st August 2014 from Peter Robinson MLA 201 Correspondence dated 4th August 2014 from John McBurney Solicitors 203 Correspondence dated 11th January 2010 from Peter Robinson MLA 208 Correspondence dated 10th January 2010 from Carál Ní Chuilín MLA 209 Extract of the Interim Commissioner for Standards’ Briefing Paper considered by the Committee at its meeting on 8th June 2011 210 Appendix 3 Minutes of Proceedings of the Committee Relating to the Report 213 1 Please note: Redactions to the text in the Commissioner’s report agreed by the Committee are denoted by . Where documents have been removed by the Committe this is also clearly indicated. iii iv Report Report Introduction 1. The Committee on Standards and Privileges has considered a report from the Northern Ireland Assembly Commissioner for Standards (“the Commissioner”) on the investigation into the allegations made in the BBC Spotlight Programme of 7 January 2010. A copy of the Commissioner’s report is included at Appendix 1. Background to the investigation 2. On 7 January 2010 the BBC broadcasted an episode of its Spotlight programme which made a number of allegations about the then MLA Mrs Iris Robinson and Mr Peter Robinson MLA. The allegations were informed by disclosures made by Dr Selwyn Black, a former employee of Mrs Robinson. At the centre of these was the allegation that Mrs Robinson had obtained substantial sums of money from two property developers and had given the money to a young man named Kirk McCambley. The relevant allegations are considered further below and in the Commissioner’s report. 3. As some of the allegations related to Mrs and Mr Robinson’s respective roles as MLAs, the Committee on Standards and Privileges met on 11 January 2010 to consider the matter. At that meeting the Committee noted correspondence from Mr Robinson which requested that the Committee commence an inquiry into the questions raised in the programme. The Committee also noted correspondence from Ms Carál Ní Chuilín MLA which requested that an investigation be carried out. Copies of both items of correspondence are included at Appendix 2. 4. The Committee agreed to write to Dr Tom Frawley, the then interim Assembly Commissioner for Standards (“the interim Commissioner”), requesting him to carry out an investigation into the conduct of Mrs Robinson and Mr Robinson. This letter, which is included at document 1 of Annex D of the Commissioner’s report, referred the matter under the then standing order 69A(1)(b) and asked the interim Commissioner: “…to carry out a thorough investigation into the conduct of Mrs Iris Robinson MLA and Mr Peter Robinson MLA in order to enable the Committee to determine whether or not any breaches of the Assembly’s Code of Conduct and Guide to the Rules Relating to the Conduct of Members have occurred”. 5. The investigation transferred from the interim Commissioner to the Commissioner (Mr Douglas Bain) on 17 September 2012. He submitted the final report on the investigation on 3 July 2014. A timeline setting out the key milestones during the period from the Committee’s referral until the submission of the report is included at annex A. Significant periods of time are accounted for by the suspension of the investigation from January 2010 to June 2011 to allow for the consideration of the matter by the PSNI; the transfer of the investigation from the interim Commissioner to the Commissioner on 17 September 2012; the ongoing ill-health of Mrs Robinson and her consequent unavailability for interview; and the consideration by the Commissioner of the various representations made by Mrs Robinson’s solicitor in relation to the content of earlier versions of his report. 6. Both the interim and current Commissioner made a number of unsuccessful attempts to arrange to interview Mrs Robinson. Then, in January 2013, medical advice was provided to the Commissioner which concluded that were Mrs Robinson to participate in the proposed interview it would have a serious adverse impact on her health. The Commissioner therefore decided to complete the investigation without the benefit of interviewing her. 1 Report on the investigation into allegations made in the BBC Spotlight Programme broadcast on 7 January 2010 7. The Commissioner initially submitted a report on his investigation in November 2013 but withdrew it in February 2014 following representations from Mrs Robinson’s solicitor. A revised report was submitted on 31 March 2014 but it too was withdrawn by the Commissioner, this time following receipt of pre-action correspondence from Mrs Robinson’s solicitor. The Commissioner submitted the final version of his report on 3 July 2014 at which point he confirmed that this report would not be revised further, save by order of the Court. The Commissioner sets out more detail in relation to these exchanges in paragraphs 15 and 16 of his report. 8. It is highly regrettable that the Assembly should have had to wait so long for the conclusion of this investigation. However, the Committee acknowledges the varied and exceptional circumstances which prolonged it. The allegations made in the Spotlight programme 9. The Commissioner identified thirteen allegations contained within the Spotlight programme in relation to the conduct of Mr and Mrs Robinson. These thirteen allegations are set out in paragraph three of his report. Ten of these allegations related to Mrs Robinson and three related to Mr Robinson. 10. Of the ten allegations in relation to Mrs Robinson, the Commissioner has identified six which, if proved, could either constitute a breach of the Code of Conduct, or could have a bearing on these matters. The Commissioner has concluded that the other four allegations related to Mrs Robinson’s then role either as a councillor or an MP and therefore that these allegations fell outside the scope of the Code of Conduct.
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