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On behalf of the committee, I would like to make the following statement in relation to a complaint against an MSP. In accordance with the rules, I will first cover whether the committee agrees with the Commissioner for Ethical Standards in Public Life in Scotland’s findings in fact and conclusions on the complaint and then move on to cover the committee’s decision on sanctions.
The committee has considered a complaint from Alex Salmond MSP about James Kelly MSP. The complaint is that James Kelly released a press statement on 22 March 2015 setting out details of an allegation that was referred by Mr Kelly to the commissioner to the effect that Mr Salmond was in breach of the “Code of Conduct for Members of the Scottish Parliament” by virtue of his supposed failure to register details of earnings from publications.
The Commissioner for Ethical Standards in Public Life in Scotland investigated the complaint and found that, in disclosing to the press his intention to make a complaint, James Kelly was in breach of the relevant provisions of the code of conduct, and the member acknowledged that that was the case.
The committee is unanimous in the decisions that were reached on the complaint. First, it agrees with the findings in fact and conclusions of the commissioner. Secondly, it does not consider that the breach in question justifies any sanctions being imposed on James Kelly. In reaching the decision on sanctions, the committee was mindful of the fact that James Kelly acknowledged that he had breached the code and stated that the breach was inadvertent. Furthermore, he took personal responsibility for the breach and apologised for it.
The committee takes all breaches of the code seriously. The rule covering disclosure is important because it allows investigations by the commissioner and the committee to be concluded in the absence of external partisan comment. The committee condemns, in particular, any breaches that risk causing reputational damage to another member in advance of a proper investigation.
It is the responsibility of every member to understand and conform to the code. The committee reminds James Kelly, and all other members, that members must not disclose or communicate any complaints or intention to make a complaint to members of the press or other media, or discuss the matter with them, prior to the lodging of the complaint or during stages 1 and 2 of the procedure for dealing with complaints. Members of the Scottish Parliament will be reminded of that section of the code.
Full details of the complaint, and the commissioner’s investigation of it, will be included in the committee’s report, which will be published later this afternoon.
10:22 Meeting continued in private until 10:33.Previous
Cross-party Group