Item 4 on the agenda is on our forward work programme for the period up to the Christmas recess. Are there any comments on the paper?
I want to raise formally the issue of leaks from this committee to the press. I am not sure when I should raise the issue, but I assume that it would have some relevance to our work programme.
Do you want to have a discussion of the matter?
Yes. What happened this weekend was regrettable and has brought the committee into disrepute.
I will put the matter on the agenda for our next meeting. It is not on the agenda for today's meeting and it would not be appropriate—
If we do not deal with the issue today, we leave ourselves open to criticism. It would be wrong of us not to deal with it today.
I suggest that we have an adjournment.
Meeting adjourned.
On resuming—
We were considering agenda item 4—the forward work programme. I hope that everyone has had a chance to read the programme, as there is a lot of work ahead of us. Are there any other issues that we need to address?
Yes, there are. We need to address how we deal with media inquiries in relation to complaints that have been received—or not received—by this committee. I was most concerned to read in The Sunday Times the headline "Schools minister reprimanded by MSPs' watchdog". I have received no complaint through the committee against that minister and I have not discussed, debated or investigated the issue. I was, therefore, very concerned to read that a
I would like to come in at this point, Karen. You have raised an important issue. At the previous meeting of the committee two weeks ago, I referred to a press article and I said to members:
The minister concerned has not been reprimanded by this committee.
No. Absolutely not.
We need to have a strategy for—
We will put this matter on the agenda for our next meeting so that we can discuss it in more detail. Moving on to—
How—between now and the next meeting—will inquiries by the press in relation to complaints or non-complaints and media articles or non-media articles, be dealt with? It is important that no one is left in any doubt about what will happen between now and the next meeting, when we will have a full discussion.
The procedure is that, if a complaint comes in, the clerks bring it to me and we investigate it. The clerks send off for information and if the complaint is unfounded—as most are—the clerks reply with a letter to that effect. More serious cases will be brought before all the members of the committee. If there are any press inquiries of a factual nature, they can be responded to. However, I would like to make it absolutely clear that any correspondence between the clerks, myself and any other MSP is absolutely confidential and should not be released.
I really did not want to discuss the matter now; but I have to comment on something that you just said. If a matter has been raised with you or with the clerks, and if correspondence has been entered into, I do not think that any comment about that should be made to the press. The matter would not have come before the committee and the committee would not have taken a view. Until we know what we are doing with a particular case, we should not make it public.
Are you suggesting that we should not comment on it at all?
Yes.
All right. I am happy with that.
There are ways of dealing with media inquiries, but that might be a discussion for another time.
It is important that we have that discussion.
May I comment on the work programme?
Please do.
We have agreed to recommend to Parliament that we appoint a commissioner for standards. That will need legislation. I envisage that we would be the lead committee for handling that legislation, so we must find space in the work programme to cover that.
That is a good point. Are there any other comments, particularly about lobbying? Is everybody happy with the proposed route and the time scale for it?
We must be realistic about what we are trying to do, and we must do it well rather than quickly. The proposed time scale is appropriate. It will allow us to have all the information before us before we make any further decisions on the matter. It would be appropriate to consider submitting a final report in December 2000 or January 2001.
I want also to draw members' attention to correspondence that I have received from the Minister for Parliament, offering the Executive's assistance in replacing the existing Scotland Act 1998 (Transitory and Transitional Provisions) (Members' Interests) Order 1999.
Are there deficiencies in the present members' interests order that need to be rectified?
We have been noting areas of difficulty. We were keen to allow the Scotland Act 1998 (Transitory and Transitional Provisions) (Members' Interests) Order 1999 some time in operation before trying to assess it properly. We intend to produce an issues paper for the committee to consider.
Would there be an update that stresses good practice, rather than a fundamental change?
That is a matter for the committee. I do not want to be evasive, but I would not like to prejudge the committee's response.
Rather than delegate the matter to the Minister for Parliament and his officials, cannot the committee know exactly what the issues are?
We are not delegating the matter to the Minister for Parliament. He has offered the assistance of the Executive to the clerking team.
The policy will have to be settled by the committee. Assistance in following that through into draft legislation will be most valuable.
So a paper will come before us on the issues that need updating, modernisation or clarification, the committee will decide what must be done and the Minister for Parliament and his officials will help with drafting.
I will need to explore the matter, but I think that that is the sort of assistance that the Executive is offering.
It is useful to have the Executive's help in taking a bill through Parliament and getting it on to the legislative programme. At the conclusion of our deliberations, it would be useful if Executive officials were on hand to help.
Subject to a decision about a commissioner—which will involve more work in designing a bill—are members happy with that decision?
The committee has been busy in the Parliament's first year and we have done a lot of ground-clearing work. Can we produce a handbook for members to gather together the members' interests order, the registration of members' staff interests and so on? That would provide a comprehensive guide to standards for people coming into the Parliament.
Are you expecting a by-election, Des?
I just think that, at some stage, we could publish that as a package, which would allow us to see whether there are any holes.
We now move to agenda item 5, which is discussion of a final draft report on the register of members' staff interests. As agreed at the beginning of the meeting, we shall move into private session. I ask members of the public and press, official reporters and broadcasting staff to leave the meeting.
Meeting continued in private until 11:16.
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